Fix You
by kathyluvzelle
Summary: Samantha Gilbert is a normal...as normal as a 14 year old girl can be. When the Salvatores come to town, she and Elena get caught in the mess. And there's something Stefan and Damon are keeping from the girls. Something related to Katherine. What are they hiding and how will Sam react when she finds out?
1. Pilot

_Dear Diary,_

_Today is going to be different. It has to be. I'm not going to be the girl everyone feels sorry for. Well let's face it, I haven't been that girl at all. At least I tried not to be. I kept myself busy all summer, doing everything I could to help others just for my own selfish desire to not think about what happened that night. So I wouldn't have to think of the sobbing, screams, the feeling I had when I found out both my mom and dad were dead, the feeling I had when I thought Elena was dead too._

_Jenna says I'm like her. She did the same thing keeping herself busy with all different things from work to helping out in the community like me, but she ultimately ended up thinking about what happened all summer while I managed to keep it out of mind. For a while at least. I had to keep in mind I wasn't the only one who lost them, Elena and Jeremy did too. And I tried my best to be there for them, Elena let me in while Jeremy….blocked me out more and more with each passing day. I hope he goes back to being my fun big brother because even though I didn't show it much…..I need him. Both him and Elena._

_I need a change. A new beginning. And it's going to start today. I hope._

_-Samantha Gilbert_

I sighed and shut my diary, sticking it under the cushion of my window seat. I stood up and walked over to my large vanity mirror, tucking a lock of my long brown hair behind my ear. I didn't see much of my mother in me, which...could be a good thing. I didn't have to think about her each time I looked in a mirror. I was pale in comparison to her and Elena too and I was also short. It seemed like the Gilbert gene of being tall wasn't something I got, but Elena and Jeremy got. They were over the average height, while I was a good two inches under the average height for girls my age- putting me at 5 feet 2 inches.

"Elena! Jeremy! Sam! Come down for breakfast!" Jenna called up the stairs. I took a deep breath.

"You're going to have a good day," I said convincingly to myself. "Everything...will be just fine."

I hopped down the stairs and strolled into the kitchen, seeing Jenna walk around to get her things together. I went to the coffee pot and poured myself a cup of coffee.

"Morning Aunt Jenna," I said to her.

"Morning," she returned. "Have you seen my watch?"

"You mean like the one on your wrist?"

"Yeah like-" she cut herself off when she looked at it. She laughed sheepishly. "I knew it was there."

I smiled as Jeremy walked through to the table, taking my cup in the process, and began stuffing things into his backpack.

"Hey," I complained after he took my coffee.

"It'll stunt your growth," he said taking a sip. "You're short enough as it is."

"Gee thanks," I said sarcastically as Elena came in the room. I poured another cup of coffee for me.

"Morning," she said taking the cup from me. I made a face.

"Coffee thieves," I muttered. Jenna smiled at me before going back to what she was doing and letting out an exasperated sigh.

"It's your first day of school and I am totally and completely unprepared," she said scolding herself. She began digging through her purse, pulling out some money. "Need lunch money?"

"I'm fine," Elena told her.

"Me too," I said while Jeremy just took the money from her.

"Okay guys, anything else? Pencil? Paper? What am I forgetting?"

"Your presentation time?" I said glancing at the clock. She shook her head as she checked her watch.

"My thesis advisor is meeting me at...now. Crap," she panicked letting her hair down.

"Go," Elena told her. "We'll be fine."

Jenna nodded and practically ran out. I walked over to the table and held out her bag before she even came back in to take it. She smiled gratefully at me and ran back out.

"You okay?" I heard Elena asked Jeremy. He scoffed.

"Don't start," he said grabbing his backpack. He set his coffee cup down by the sink and took the one I was about to take a drink from. He smirked at me a little and left.

"Seriously?" I asked no one in particular. Elena shrugged.

"Bonnie is going to be here in five minutes. Do you need a ride?" she asked looking at her phone. I shook my head.

"Chastity is coming by with Liv, I'll be fine," I told her grabbing another cup.

"Okay," she said. A horn honked outside. "That's Bonnie. I'll see you at school."

"Bye," I said. She left and I looked at the coffee pot, letting my shoulders drop. No more coffee.

* * *

I found myself in the car with Chastity- my best friend- and her older sister, Olivia. They were telling me about their recent trip to France and how there were so many more hot guys there than there were here, but I wasn't really paying attention.

Instead I was staring out the window, watching the buildings and trees as they passed by in a blur.

"So how's Jeremy?" Olivia asked catching my attention. She was two years older than me and Chastity- Elena's age- and she had a huge crush on Jeremy.

"Oh...he's good, I think," I replied.

"You think?"

"He doesn't really talk to me or Elena as much as he used to," I admitted. "I wouldn't know exactly how he is. But I can tell it's not amazing."

"Is he still chasing that Donovan girl around?" she asked.

She meant Vicki. Ever since middle school, her and Vicki had this rivalry thing going since they both really liked Jeremy at the time. That was before Vicki got into drugs and Tyler Lockwood. Olivia thought she had Jeremy to herself then, and she did for a while before Jeremy got into drugs himself and he got back into Vicki.

"I'm not sure," I sighed. Honestly, I hoped not. All she did was play around with his feelings, using him for drugs. I didn't want him getting hurt. Not again.

"Well, if he is I'll see to it that he moves on from her," she said. I know she wasn't doing it for my sake, but hers but I wasn't going to say anything.

"How are you doing?" Chastity asked.

"Better," I said. She gave me the look she always gave me when she thought I was lying. "Really. I'm fine."

"You haven't been keeping yourself occupied to avoid thinking about things have you?" she asked.

"Would it be the worse thing in the world if I did?"

"Sam!" she whined. "You promised you wouldn't do that. It's not the way to get over things and you know that."

"I know," I sighed. "It's a bad habit. I'll get over it sooner or later."

"I'd rather it be sooner," she said and I sighed and looked back out my window.

* * *

Chastity walked up to my locker with me, which was very close to Elena's, and smiled at Elena and Bonnie. Bonnie came up to me and pulled me into a big sisterly hug.

"Hey you," she said. "It's been forever since I've had a conversation with you that lasted more than five minutes."

"I know," I said. "Sorry about that. I've been-"

"Busy, I know," she said with a smile. Then she turned serious. "You know you can talk to me about anything any time right?"

"Yeah I know," I said. "Thanks Bon-Bon."

I always called her Bon-Bon because when I was four and she was six, I had trouble saying whole names. I tried saying her name over and over again until I just got frustrated and ended up calling her Bon-Bon since the first part of her name was the only thing I could say.

Bonnie smiled and looked past me, then glanced over at Elena who was trying hard not to stare. I followed her gaze over my shoulder at Matt and Tyler then looked back at Elena sympathetically. She and Matt had dated for a while, but she needed a break after our parents died. I couldn't blame her. I may have done the same with my boyfriend...well I did do the same, but it was mostly for a different reason.

Matt shut his locker after staring at Elena for a while and walked down the hall after she waved at him. Tyler shrugged at us and waved, and then followed Matt down the hall while Elena sighed.

"He hates me," she said sadly.

"He doesn't hate you," Bonnie said. "He just-"

"Sammie!" a happy voice exclaimed. I turned just in time for my happy blonde friend to wrap her arms around me tightly in a hug. "Oh my god! How are you?! I know I just saw you like two weeks ago, but I missed you! And Elena!" She pulled Elena into a hug. "I haven't seen you in a while. It's so good to see you!"

"We're good, Caroline," Elena answered with a small smile. I nodded in confirmation when Caroline looked at me.

"Are you sure?" she asked.

"Much better," Elena told her. Caroline said something along the lines of poor thing before hugging Elena again.

"Well, I gotta go. I'll see you later," she said after letting Elena go.

"Guess I'm invisible," Chastity mumbled as she walked away.

"Oh you're not invisible, she just didn't see you," Bonnie told her.

"Yeah. Invisible," she said. I rolled my eyes at my drama queen friend and the four of us started walking down the hall, but I stopped short when someone came into view. The three turned and looked at me with confusion on their faces.

"Sam? You okay?" Elena asked worriedly. I nodded, still staring down the hall. She looked and saw who I saw, who I didn't want to walk by. Chastity and Bonnie saw too.

"Oh," Chastity said. "Don't worry. You don't have to talk to him if you don't want to."

"Tell that to him," I sighed as he saw me and began walking down toward us.

"Come on," Elena said wrapping an arm around me. She walked on my left side while Bonnie walked on my right and Chastity walked in front of us.

"Sam," Adam started.

"Nope, she needs her space," Chastity told him.

"I just-"

"No. You hurt my best friend once, I'm not giving you a second chance to."

"Chas-"

"Shut it!" Chasitity turned on him, gesturing for us to go ahead without her.

Elena, Bonnie, and I turned the corner while Chastity stayed back and began yelling at Adam in the middle of the hall. Adam Hanson. My first boyfriend. My first heartbreak.

* * *

"Hold up," Bonnie said suddenly as we kept walking down the hall. Elena and I stopped with her and looked at her expectantly for an answer to why she stopped us. "Who's this?"

Elena and I followed her gaze into the office and saw who she was looking at. A fairly tall guy in a black leather jacket talking to the secretary, with his back to us.

"All I see is back," Elena said.

"And brown hair," I added.

"Seattle," Bonnie said. "And I'm guessing he plays guitar."

"What?" I asked with a smile.

"It's her whole psychic thing," Elena reminded me. I nodded remembering over the summer when Bonnie told me that her Grams told her their ancestors were from Salem and that they had some witch blood in them to this day. I could tell she was taking this whole witch thing a lot more seriously now than she had over the summer.

Elena and Bonnie were talking about the 'hot' back when I noticed Jeremy walking past us and into the guys' bathroom, looking less than his best. Elena glanced at me and furrowed her eyebrows worriedly.

"You okay Sam?" she asked me.

"I...I think we should go talk to Jeremy," I told her. She got a look on her face saying she knew what I was talking about.

"We'll be right back," she said to Bonnie. Bonnie nodded then Elena followed me into the boy's bathroom just in time to see Jeremy put eye drops in his eyes. Elena marched right up to him when she spotted what he was doing and grabbed his face, looking at his eyes.

"Great, first day of school hasn't even started and you're already stoned," she said sounding very unhappy. I knew she wasn't and I wasn't very much either.

Jeremy pulled away from Elena's grip.

"I'm not," he tried to argue without looking at either of us.

"Where is it?" Elena asked as she began looking through his pockets. Jeremy tried pushing her hands away. "Is it on you?"

"Stop! Just stop, you need to chill yourself Elena," Jeremy said. He then glanced at me. "Are you gonna say something too?"

"I don't know what to say Jeremy," I admitted as Elena kept searching his pockets. "Nothing other than that this needs to stop."

"Sam's right and by the way, 'chill myself?' Is that stoner talk? Dude you are so cool," Elena said sarcastically.

"Elena would you back off! You're acting crazy."

"You have not seen crazy Jeremy," I mumbled.

"She's right, again. I gave you a summer pass for this, both of us did, but we are done watching you destroy yourself," Elena lectured him.

"And you know she's serious. She'll be there to ruin your buzz every time," I told him.

Jeremy started arguing with Elena while I stood by the door, not really sure what to say. Elena was right, Jeremy couldn't keep doing this because it wasn't just hurting him, but us too. I also knew that lecturing him wasn't the way to go. He would just tune us out. I looked away when I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. It was a text message from Chastity.

**I just saw a MAJOR hawtie in the hallway. New guy, come see!**

I smiled, rolling my eyes, and looked back at my older siblings.

"I'm gonna go, guys," I said. Elena glanced at me and nodded, then went back to lecturing Jeremy. I sighed and slipped out of the bathroom.

"Oh crap," I said bumping into someone's hard chest. "Sorry, I really should pay attention to where I'm-" I looked up at saw one of the most handsome guys in the world. Light brown hair, deep green eyes, perfect nose and jaw line. Not to mention he was very muscular. "Going."

He seemed to be staring at me with as much surprise as I was at him before he shook his head the slightest bit. I blushed a little and looked down. Oooh nice shoes, I thought.

"I'm Samantha Gilbert," I blurted before I could stop myself. He furrowed his eyebrows slightly before sticking his hand out to me.

"Stefan Salvatore," he said as I shook his hand. "Very nice to meet you Samantha."

"Nice to meet you too," I smiled. He looked at where I just came from and a small smiled formed on his lips.

"Is that...the men's room?" he asked. I looked from him back at the bathroom where I had been watching Elena lecture Jeremy about the pot.

"No, I mean yeah," I stuttered a bit. "Um...this isn't weird at all."

"Not at all," he chuckled.

"I'm gonna...I'm gonna go to class now and…yeah," I said stepping to the side to get around him. He went the same way and we both smiled. We both stepped to the other side and laughed. He stepped against the wall and let me go past him.

"Thanks," I said with a smile. I walked down the hall quickly, trying to make my blush go down. I looked over my shoulder and saw he was still looking at me intensely. I turned the corner and went to my class, completely forgetting that I was supposed to find Chastity.

I walked into my history class with a sigh. By the looks of it, there wasn't going to be anyone I knew in here. That's all right. It was never too late to make new friends. I walked over to a seat and sat down on it, taking out a notebook and writing down the notes on the board.

"Hey," a familiar voice greeted, making me clench my eyes shut and pray that I was just imagining it. When I looked up, it was a huge let down.

"Hey," I said just to be polite. I said in a way that didn't opt for conversation, so I was really hoping he could take the hint. Unfortunately, the seat next to me was empty and he took the liberty of filling it.

"So... how have you been?" he asked. I looked back down at my notebook.

"Adam-"

"I know, I know. Stupid question. Of course you haven't been good," he said scolding himself slightly. "And it's mostly my fault. What I did... WHEN I did it, it was all just a horrible stack up meant for disaster. I didn't mean to hurt you. I didn't want to hurt you, but I did. I'm really sorry."

"Look...I know you're trying to make things right, but I just need time," I sighed.

"Right," he said. "I get it. A couple months...isn't enough. Especially when you had other things to deal with. Knowing you, you weren't thinking about anything were you?"

"Tried not to," I admitted.

"Did it work?" he asked. I looked up at him again.

"Relatively."

* * *

I sighed and tucked my pen and diary into my bag. After school, Elena and I came to the grave of our parents alone. Jeremy was who knows where with Vicki, Bonnie was visiting her Grams, Chastity and Olivia got sucked into shopping with their mom, and Caroline was...somewhere social. Most likely the grill with some of the girls on the cheerleading squad. So this was our last resort, mine at least.

I missed my mom and dad. Normally on days like today, when there was nothing for us to do, they would come up with something to entertain us. They would take us to see a random movie, have us all cook something together just for the fun of it, or we would just talk to them. Mom always was there to listen to me when I needed to vent and dad always knew just how to cheer me up. Of course Elena was good at both of those and so was Jeremy, but it wouldn't be the same.

I wiped all thoughts of losing mom and dad from my mind when a tear slipped out of my eye and I leaned my head on Elena's shoulder. We both jumped, however, when we heard a very loud "CAW!" We both looked up and across from us, perched on top of a head stone, was a crow. A very black and eerie crow.

"Hi bird," Elena said weirdly. She closed her diary and stuffed it in her bag while I stood up. Fog began forming around and I felt goose bumps rise up on my arms.

I quickly turned around and let out a sigh of relief when I saw Elena.

"Can we go?" I asked her. She nodded, sensing I was getting freaked out.

"Shoo!" she said to the crow. It cawed at her and flew off.

"That's what I thought," she said victoriously.

We both let out a small sigh then and Elena turned to grab her bag. I whirled around when she gasped and I looked at our parent's head stone and there was that same crow.

"Um…" I began.

"That's the same one isn't it?" Elena asked.

"I think so," I said.

"Let's…"

"Get out of here?"

"Yeah."

We both took of running, but not before I noticed the outline of a man not too far from us- which made me run faster. I'm not sure how, but I ended up losing Elena when we went into the flock of trees next to the cemetery. I slowed down, trying to catch my breath and calm down. So I saw a freaky bird. It happens. Besides, it was just a bird. It's not like it was going to kill me or anything. And what about that guy? I was so sure I saw someone, why was he just standing there? Was he there to hurt Elena or I?

I shook my head. I was way over thinking that whole thing.

* * *

Later, when she and I finally met back up at home, Elena told me about how she had bumped into Stefan at the cemetery after she and I got separated. They got to talking more and she thinks now that she may like him a little bit. I smiled at her when she asked if she knew who I was talking about.

"I met him earlier today, I meant to tell you," I said. "He seemed really sweet and very gentlemanly. I think you two would make a good couple."

"He just got to town, let him meet other people first, Sam," Elena smiled.

"Oh no, if he meets other people then he'll miss out on you," I told her. "You are an amazing girl and you deserve happiness. Especially after what happened…"

"You deserve it just as much as I do," she said.

"I think you two would be better together," I said. "Besides, you know me. I like my real bad boys."

"Which isn't good for a good girl," she teased. I stuck my tongue out at her.

"What time did Bonnie want us to meet her?" I asked.

"Um…in ten minutes actually. We should go," she said. Jenna walked in then.

"Hey we're meeting Bonnie at the grill," I told her.

"Okay," she said as she continued walking into the kitchen. She stopped then. "Hold on, I got this. Don't stay out too late. It's a school night," she said looking proud. I smiled at her.

"Well done, Aunt Jenna," Elena complimented. Jenna smiled and continued walking into the kitchen.

I patted my pockets, searching for my phone and hoping I didn't leave it up in my room, when Elena picked up her keys and the doorbell rang. I furrowed my eyebrows. Who would that be? I sighed when I failed to find my phone and concluded that I left it upstairs after all.

"I've gotta run up and get my phone," I sighed. "Can you get the-"

"On it," Elena said as she walked to the door. I nodded and went up the stairs quickly so I could grab my phone. When I got up in my room, I spotted my phone on top of my dresser right next to the window. I strolled over and grabbed it, but jumped and yelped when a thud sounded against the window.

"Sam?!" Elena called up the stairs. I let out a breath when I saw it was just a bird now standing on the tree branch next to the window. "Sam, you okay?!"

"I'm fine!" I said. "Just…a bird outside scared me is all. I'll be right down."

"Okay."

I blew some air out of my cheeks and rolled my shoulders. I really needed to calm down a little bit. I glanced at the bird quickly before walking toward my door, but froze and did a double take. That…no. That couldn't be…the SAME bird….could it? I stepped closer to the thing as I tried to figure it out. I didn't know what it was, but for some reason the bird held some familiarity. It seemed to be staring at me too and the look it was giving me sent chills down my spine. I shook my head and finally left my room, going down the stairs and kicking that bird off my mind.

"Sorry Lena," I said as I tried thinking of an excuse for taking so long. "Couldn't find my phone…."

I drifted off when I noticed Stefan standing in the doorway with Elena.

"Oh," I said with a smile. "Hey Stefan."

"Hey Samantha," he greeted back.

"Call me Sam," I said with a small wave. "Everyone does. Besides I think Samantha is kind of a mouth full."

"Alright," he chuckled. "Sam it is." He seemed to notice Elena with her keys and jacket in hand. "I'm sorry, were you two about to go somewhere?"

"Uh, yeah," I answered. "We were meeting a friend. Do you wanna come with?"

"Sure," Stefan said looking at Elena. "I'd love to."

We got to the grill and I thought something was going to go down since Matt came over after Elena and Stefan walked in behind me, side by side. Thankfully he only came over to introduce himself to Stefan and he played nice. I didn't really think Matt would start anything, not in public at least, that was more of a Tyler thing to do.

* * *

Bonnie, Elena, Stefan and I got a table and Caroline joined us- obviously for Stefan- and we got to talking. We found out that he was actually born in Mystic Falls, he moved around a lot, he was living with his uncle currently, he didn't really have siblings he talked to, and his parents passed away. A lot of his attention was divided mostly between Elena and I, but I noticed a certain look in his eye when he looked at her so a small matchmaking plan formed in my mind. I knew Elena broke up with Matt not that long ago and Matt was still having a hard time dealing with it, but I was determined to make my sister happy again.

I would work on Matt when the opportunity presented itself; right now there was a perfect one right in front of me.

"So Stefan," Caroline piped up, obviously trying to take his attention away. "If you're new, then you don't know about the party tomorrow night."

"It's a back to school thing around here and it's…not that big of a deal, but it'd give you a chance to meet new people," I said. He smiled.

"Yeah you should totally come," Caroline said brightly. He glanced at Elena before looking down, thinking it over. I smiled to myself.

"Elena will be there," I added not-so-slyly. Her eyes widened and her cheeks went red as she looked at me. He nodded.

"Sure," he said finally. "I'll be there."

* * *

"Going to the party tonight?" Adam asked me the next day at school. I sighed and got out my notebook as I sat down in my desk.

"Yeah, I am. I invited someone, so I've gotta show up," I told him. If I wanted to get past things with him, then I was going to have to talk to him.

"Who did you invite?" he asked an obvious jealousy to his tone.

"Stefan Salvatore," I told him.

"The new guy? Why?"

"Because it'd give him a chance to meet people and he seems pretty cool, so yeah. That and he really seems to like Elena so I was thinking that I could hook them up."

"Playing matchmaker again, huh?" he said the jealousy disappearing.

"She needs to be happy," I said.

"So do you."

"Well…if I can make my siblings happy again, then it's a start for me," I said. "And I'm starting tonight."

* * *

I was chatting with Elena and Bonnie later that night at the party. Bonnie and I were currently double-teaming Elena, trying to make her admit that she had a forming crush on the new guy.

"Okay so he's a little pretty," she finally said.

"More than pretty," Bonnie said. "He's got that romance novel stare. Stefan looked deep into her eyes, piercing her very soul!"

Elena and I laughed at her dramatic romance novel statement.

"Where is he anyway?" I asked looking around.

"I don't know," Bonnie said.

"Shouldn't you know? You're the psychic one after all," Elena teased. Bonnie's face brightened up.

"Right, I forgot," she said. "Give me a sec. Grams says I have to concentrate."

"Would a crystal ball be helpful madam Bennett?" I asked playfully handing her an empty beer bottle.

"That actually might," she said with a smile. She began to take it from me when she froze when her hand and my hand were both still on it, and she got this look on her face. One that looked like she was….almost scared.

"What's wrong?" Elena asked.

Bonnie hand flew back to her side and she stared at me for a minute.

"That was weird," she said. "When I touched you, I saw a crow."

"A crow?" I asked, smile disappearing from my face. A crow? Please tell me she was kidding.

"A crow," she repeated. "There was fog and a man."

Elena looked freaked out while I furrowed my eyebrows. A crow….fog…..and a man. No, that couldn't be. She wasn't at the cemetery the other day with Elena and I. This was definitely starting to freak me out more and more.

"I'm drunk," she said suddenly. "It's the beer talking. Nothing psychic about it. Yeah? Okay, I'm gonna get a refill."

She walked away, leaving Elena and I alone together.

"How could she have-"

"I have no idea," Elena said. We watched her walk away until she was out of our sights and we turned back, both of us jumping when we noticed Stefan was by us now.

"You came!" I exclaimed happily.

"You asked, I came," he said. I smiled and looked from him to Elena, both of who were keeping quiet and trying not to smile too much at each other.

"Well, I am going to go look for Jeremy or Chastity," I said. "Enjoy!"

"I'm not sure, but I think your little sister may be trying to set us up," I heard Stefan say after I walked away.

"Yeah, there's no doubt she is. It's not the first time she's tried to set me up with someone."

I smirked to myself slightly. She knew what I was up to. I walked around looking for anyone I recognized when I saw Jeremy sitting alone, watching Vicki with Tyler. I sighed and decided that it was time to make him happy.

"Hey," I said cheerfully as I plopped down next to him.

"Hey," he mumbled distractedly.

"So," I sighed. "Vicki."

"Look don't start with this," he said. "I know how you and Elena feel about her-"

"I wasn't going there," I defended. "It's just…it's not her. I just don't think you should be chasing after someone who keeps stringing you along like she does when it seems like she has absolutely no intentions of getting back with you."

"How did you know that we-"

"I'm not stupid, Jeremy," I told him. "I know you. I see the way you look at her and you were with her all the time over the summer."

"Yeah," he said. "I do…. really care about her but it's just….Tyler this and Tyler that. Come to think of it, they've been in the woods for a while."

"Jeremy, don't do-"

I cut myself off when he walked into the woods in the direction Vicki and Tyler went. I let out a breath and went after him. I finally caught up to him just in time to hear Vicki yell at Tyler.

"Go Tyler, just get the hell away from me," she said. I rushed over in time to see Jeremy standing defensively in front of Vicki.

"Wow," Tyler said. "Vicki Donovan says no. That's a first."

"Just get out of here Lockwood," Jeremy said. Tyler rolled his eyes and they landed on me when I walked up beside Jeremy.

"You guys okay?" I asked crossing my arms. Tyler smirked and looked at Jeremy.

"Actually Sam, I've got a lot of tension in my neck. Mind helping me take care of it?" he asked with a flirty smile.

"Leave my little sister alone," Jeremy growled.

"Whatever," Tyler said. He walked away and I looked between Jeremy and Vicki, who clearly needed to talk. Tyler was over, it seemed. Maybe Vicki could turn around and be happy with Jeremy. Maybe she would be enough to pull him out of the drug phase. Maybe they both would get out of it together.

"I'll leave you two alone," I said. Jeremy nodded and I wandered off, but it wasn't long before I heard Vicki storm off and I was back by Jeremy's side.

"She won't talk to me," he said. "I've got to get her to talk to me. Please, Sam you're good at getting people to talk."

"I'll help you," I said. "Let's go find her."

* * *

"Jeremy! Sam! What are you two doing?" Elena asked. I almost groaned. She must have seen us back at the party while we were looking for Vicki. She definitely did not have any hope for the girl and I didn't really want her convincing Jeremy to give up on her because that would drive him further away from us.

"I don't want to hear it!" Jeremy snapped. He was a little drunk since he had a few drinks I couldn't stop him from throwing back.

"Yeah well too bad," Elena said.

"Lena please-"

Suddenly Jeremy fell forward.

"Vicki?" he asked with fright.

"You found her?" I asked walking over to him. I gasped when I saw her. She was lying unconscious on the ground; blood on her neck like something bit her.

"Oh my god," Elena gasped.

"No," Jeremy shook his head. He touched her neck and she gasped, eyes flying open and her hand gripped Jeremy's wrist. She started gasping for air.

"We've gotta take her back. She needs help," I said quickly. Jeremy nodded and picked her up while Elena and I led the way back to the party.

"Somebody help!" Elena and I called when we got back. Matt rushed over as soon as he saw it was his sister.

"Vicki? Vicki! What the hell! Somebody call an ambulance!" he shouted.

"Everybody back up, give her some space!" Tyler shouted as people started crowding more.

"She's loosing a lot of blood!" I said. "Something bit her neck! It's really bad, we need something to stop it."

Matt brought over a towel and pushed it against the bite. We all started talking to Vicki, trying to wake her up or get her talking a little at the least. As long as she keeps consciousness, it was a good sign that she would make it through. I just want to know what the hell happened to her.

* * *

**-Third POV-**

"What's going on?" Zach asked after his uncle Stefan rushed in to the house.

"Someone else was attacked tonight, Zach, and it wasn't me," Stefan replied instantly before running up the stairs to his room.

He came in his room, closing the door behind him, just in time for a crow to fly in and land on top of the bookshelf across from the balcony window. He stared at the crow for a moment before realization set on his face and he slowly turned to the balcony.

"Damon," he said solemnly.

A man with pitch-black hair and ice blue eyes smirked back at him.

"Hello brother," he replied.

The crow squawked, earning Stefan's attention briefly before he turned it back to the older brother he hadn't seen in quite some time.

"The crow's a bit much, don't you think?" he asked.

"Wait till you see what I can do with the fog," Damon said. Stefan stared at him for a moment.

"When'd you get here?" he asked suspiciously.

"Well, I couldn't miss your first day at school," Damon answered as he walked toward the bookshelf, setting his hand on a higher shelf. "Your hair's different. I like it."

"It's been fifteen years, Damon," Stefan said.

"Thank god. I couldn't take another day of the nineties. That horrible grunge look?" Damon chuckled. "Did not suit you."

He walked away from one bookshelf to the other while his little brother watched him warily as if he would attack at any moment, which knowing Damon he very well could.

"Remember, Stefan, it's important to stay away from fads," Damon continued.

"Why are you here?" Stefan asked ignoring all the comments.

"I miss my little brother," Damon said raising his eyebrow, clearly not meaning it.

"You hate small towns. They're boring, there's nothing for you to do," Stefan pointed out. Damon scoffed.

"I've managed to keep myself busy," he said.

"You know you left that girl alive tonight. That's very clumsy of you."

"Ah and that could be a problem...for you."

Stefan stared at him, shaking his head slightly.

"Why are you here now?" he demanded.

"I could ask you the same question," Damon said almost teasingly. "However, I'm fairly certain your answer can be summed up all into one little word...Elena."

Damon smirked slightly at his brother, who kept a hard stare on Damon. He sighed.

"She took my breath away. Elena," he continued. "She's a dead ringer for Katherine. But, like you I'm sure, there's another little word that I wasn't expecting at all and this one left me absolutely stunned and breathless. Samantha."

Stefan stiffened at the mention of her name.

"Now, Samantha. Dear, sweet, little Samantha just stopped me in my tracks. She could pass for Elizabeth any day. And how ironic is it that even now, the two of them come out as sisters? It's just mind bottling. I felt exactly as I did the day we met Elizabeth and that feeling isn't something that's easy to channel," Damon explained. "Is it working? Being around the two of them? Being in their world, does it make you feel alive?"

"Elena's not Katherine and Sam is not Elizabeth," Stefan said shaking his head.

"Well let's hope not," Damon said walking in front of Stefan. "We both know how that ended. Now tell me, when's the last time you had something stronger than a squirrel?"

"I know what you're doing, Damon, and it's not going to work," Stefan said as he turned away.

Damon hit Stefan's chest, trying to rile him up.

"Come on, don't you crave a little," Damon taunted.

"Stop it."

"Let's do it. Together. I saw a couple girls out there," Damon said as he hit Stefan again. "Or let's just cut to the chase. Let's just go straight for Elena! No, you get Elena. I'll take the sweeter one, I'll take Sam. You've smelled her right? She smells absolutely divine, her blood must be top of the line."

"Stop it!" Stefan shouted as he shoved his brother back.

"Imagine what their blood must taste like!" Damon shouted back.

Stefan turned his face away, feeling the veins pop out around his eyes and his fangs extend.

"I can!" Damon huffed.

"I said stop!" Stefan shouted, his face completely vamped out.

He growled and charged at his brother, sending the both of them out the window. After he landed, Stefan got up noticing that Damon wasn't anywhere near him. He looked up to the window, seeing it shattered and then turned when he heard Damon.

"I was impressed," he said from the hedge. "I give it a six, missing style but I was pleasantly surprised. Very good with the whole face and the-" He playfully imitated Stefan's growling before laughing. "-thing. It was good."

"You know it's all games, Damon, but wherever you go, people die," Stefan said walking toward him.

"That's a given," Damon said bluntly.

"Not here," Stefan said. "I won't allow it."

"I take that as an invitation," Damon smirked.

"Damon, please," Stefan begged. "After all these year, can't we just give it a rest?"

"I promised you an eternity of misery," Damon said simply. "So I'm just keeping my word."

"Just stay away from Elena," Stefan begged. "And stay away from Sam."

"Where's your ring?" Damon asked looking at Stefan's hand. He inhaled sharply. "Oh yeah, sun's coming up in a couple of hours and, poof. Ashes to ashes."

Stefan looked sadly at his brother, just wishing for the old him to return. Damon chuckled.

"Relax," Damon said. "It's right here."

He held out Stefan's ring in his hand, allowing Stefan to take it from him slowly and slide it back on his finger. Then Damon grabbed Stefan by the throat, eyes black and veins around. He threw Stefan off to the side. Stefan rolled on his back, Damon standing over him.

"You should know better than to think you're stronger than me," Damon said darkly. "You lost that fight when you stopped feeding on people. I wouldn't try it again."

They heard noises coming from the house and Damon chuckled a little, a smirk accompanying it.

"I think we woke Zach up," he began walking away from Stefan, leaving him lying on the ground. "Sorry Zach."

Stefan watched as his brother walked away from him, breathing heavily, and dreading the things he knew his brother was planning on doing.

* * *

**-Sam Again-**

The ambulance along with animal control and the police finally made it and loaded Vicki into the car. I held Matt's hand comfortingly. I had managed to convince Elena and Jeremy to let me go with him because there was no way I was going to let him be alone. Not after what happened to his sister. I knew what it felt like to lose someone and I wanted to be there for Matt if…if something bad happened and Vicki didn't make it. I was praying to every god I could think of to let her make it, but sometimes fate was cruel.

"Both of you are family?" the paramedic asked.

"Even if she wasn't, would you really let someone her size be alone around here after what just happened?" Matt asked the guy. He just grunted and looked me up and down, a little too perverted for my taste, and let us both in the back of the van next to Vicki. Matt stared at her with wide, scared eyes.

"Hey," I said softly as the car started moving. "It's okay. She'll be okay."

"I hope you're right," he whispered. I put my hand on his shoulder. God please let her be okay.

* * *

"Jenna called," I said walking back into the hospital room. The doctors had gotten Vicki patched up right away when we got to the hospital and they did a blood transfusion since she lost so much. Right now, she was asleep in bed and Matt was sitting by her side. "She'll be here to pick me up in about fifteen minutes."

Matt just nodded and looked back at Vicki.

"Thank you for coming here with me," he said after a moment. I sat down in the chair next to him and smiled sadly.

"You needed someone here with you," I said. "I just…I couldn't let you be alone for this."

"And I'm glad that's in your nature," he said. "I think I would have lost it if you weren't here for me."

Soon Vicki's eyes fluttered open and Matt perked up.

"Vick," he whispered. "Hey, it's okay."

"You're gonna be okay, Vicki," I whispered.

"Matt. Sam," she whispered weakly.

"Hey don't try to talk, okay?" Matt said.

"Save your energy," I said. "You're gonna be fine."

"Vampire," she said, fear lacing her voice.

Matt and I looked at her weirdly for a moment before glancing at each other. Did….did she just say vampire?


	2. The Old Comet

"Hey I looked for you at the party last night," Adam said after he sat down.

"Oh, sorry about that. Chastity said the same thing, I just...I got a little held up."

"I heard. Brian and I took off a little bit before that all went down. How is Vicki? Do you know?"

"The doctors said that with rest, she should be fine," I said leaving out the part where she woke up a little after getting patched up and said vampire. I didn't need people to think she was losing it. She was a little drunk, that's probably why she said it anyway.

"That's good," he said. "Really good. Anyway...are you going to see the comet tomorrow?"

"Of course, I helped organize the event," I said. "I'll probably go with Chastity and Bonnie since Elena's probably gonna be with Stefan."

"Oh, I almost forgot about that," he said with a grin. "How did your matchmaking work out?"

"Well he came over last night and they talked for a long time, so I'm hoping something will become of it," I said. "If not, then I'll just have to work my magic and make something happen."

* * *

"So I was thinking something tomboyish," Chastity said. "You know, surprise people by being the opposite of what they would expect me, a blonde, to be. What do you think?"

"I think whatever you want to do would work," I told her. She was asking me about the outfit she was going to wear to see the comet tomorrow night. Normally she wouldn't worry about these types of things, but it was different since Jeremy was actually going to be there.

We walked around the campus toward the parking lot until Elena and Matt came into view. She and I walked up to them quickly and I hopped on Matt's back.

"Hey Matty," I greeted with a smile.

"Hey short stuff," he greeted with a clear fake smile. I let myself down and he turned. "I wanna thank you again for being there with me last night. It means a lot."

"It was no problem," I said. "I'm really glad she's going to be okay."

"Yeah," he said. "Anyway, I'm actually about to go back there now and see if she's awake. I wanna know what really happened last night. I'll see you later."

"Bye Matt, let me know what she says," I said as he walked away.

"You got it!"

"Give her a hug for me if you can!" Chasitity called after him. I looked at Elena who seemed a little down. I put a hand on her shoulder.

"You okay?" I asked her. She nodded and forced a smile.

"I'll live," she said.

* * *

"I think he's a grade A asshole," I muttered on the phone. Jenna called me after her conference with Mr. Tanner about Jeremy and it turns out he's not very supportive of Jenna being our sole guardian. Well that wasn't really his choice now was it?

"I can see why Jeremy doesn't want to go to his class," she said. "The man's not even my teacher and I felt intimidated. I can't imagine what people going in there must feel like every day."

"Well he's not my teacher, thank god, but I know he's been giving both Jeremy and Elena a hard time which just makes me mad," I said. "I really don't think teacher was a good job for him to take up."

"I think he'd do a better job as an interragator, he really knows how to put people on the spot," she replied. "Anyway, I'm gonna go and let you hang out with the girls. That is where you are right? You're not pulling a Jeremy on me?"

"He went to see Vicki this morning, nothing too bad," I said. "And yes, I am with Bonnie, Caroline, Chastity, and Elena. Say hi guys," I held out the phone for them.

"Hey Jenna," they all said.

"That was comforting, thank you Sam," she said.

"No problem, Aunt Jenna," I said.

"Let me know if you see your brother too. I have to have a few words with him," she said.

"Right," I said with a smile. I set my phone on the table after she hung up and sighed.

"Anyway, I was talking to Grams and she said the comet was a sign of impending doom," Bonnie said after I did. "The last time it passed over Mystic Falls, there was a lot of death. So much blood and carnage, it created a bed of paranormal activity."

"That's what my aunt said," Chastity said.

"Yeah and then you poured both your Grams and your aunt another shot and they told you both about the aliens," Caroline said sarcastically to Bonnie and Chastity. Both of them rolled their eyes at her comment. Caroline looked at Elena then. "So then what?"

"So then nothing," Elena replied.

"You and Stefan talked all night?" she asked doubtfully. "There was no sloppy first kiss or touchy feely of any kind?"

"Nope. We didn't go there," Elena told her.

"Besides I would have heard something," I added with a wrinkled nose. "Glad I didn't."

Elena elbowed me playfully with a smile while I smirked at her and took a sip of my iced tea.

"Not even a handshake?" Caroline asked. "I mean, Elena, we are your friends. Okay? You are supposed to share the smut."

"Gross," Chastity said.

"We just talked for hours."

"Okay what is with the blockage? Just jump his bones already!" Caroline said, clearly getting frustrated while Bonnie and Chastity looked at her with annoyance and disbelief. "Okay it's easy. Boy likes girl. Girl likes boy. Sex."

"Is that all you think about?" Chasitiy asked her. Caroline gave her a look.

"Profound," Elena said. Then she pursed her lips and started picking up her stuff.

"Where are you going?" I asked her.

"Where are WE going," she corrected me as she stood up. "I'm your ride. And Caroline's right, it is easy. If I sit here long enough, I'll end up talking myself out of it instead of doing what I started the day saying I was going to do. So come on."

"Yuck I hope I don't hear noises," I whined as she took me by the arm and led me toward the car.

"Have fun!" Chastity called after us. One of us would.

* * *

"Can you just do me a favor and try not to be too loud with the noises," I begged as Elena and I walked up the path to the entrance of the Salvatore boarding house. She rolled her eyes.

"I wasn't going to go there today," she said ringing the doorbell.

"Well either way," I said folding my arms across my chest. She smiled at me and knocked on the door when no one answered after she rang the doorbell. Er...chime...bells? Bells.

The door creaked open the slightest bit and Elena looked at me, confused. I shrugged and she poked her head in the house.

"Stefan?" she called stepping inside. I followed her lead, closing the door behind me. Inside the house was huge. Very modern, but had an old school aura to it. And by old school I mean...nineteenth century old school.

We walked further into the house, down the hall and Elena called Stefan again and got no answer again. Was he even here? A creaking noise came from behind us and we both turned around. The door was closed, wasn't it? How as it creaking? If that was even the door...

"Should we go?" I asked Elena. She didn't answer, she was still staring at the door. I looked and saw it was now wide open. I could have sworn I closed it. She stepped closer to it while I stayed in my place. How was it open when I closed it?

Suddenly a crow flew in, scaring the hell out of both of us. Elena turned and so did I, but into someone's chest. I gasped and took a couple steps back, my eyes meeting the brightest...no...iciest blue eyes I've ever seen. The guy in front of me was incredibly...handsome? No...hot? Sexy, for sure, mysterious. He had a dangerous aura to him as well and he seemed to be eyeing me with a lot of interest.

"W-we're sorry for barging in," I said quickly. "The door was..." I turned around and saw it was now closed. What the hell? "Open."

Elena looked at the door and noticed it closed too and her confusion showed on her face even more. I looked back at the man and he had a small smile playing on his lips, his eyes still on me with lots of...something. I couldn't put my finger on it. He then switched his eyes over to Elena.

"You must be Elena," he said to her. Then he looked back at me. "Which would make you Samantha."

We looked at him with wonder. How did he know our names? Who was he?

"I'm Damon," he said. "Stefan's brother."

"He didn't tell me he had a brother," Elena said.

"Well, Stefan's not one to brag. Please, come," he said leading us to the living room. "I'm sure Stefan will be along any second."

We stepped into the living room...no. This couldn't be the living room? This room was bigger than the whole bottom floor of my house alone!

"Wow," I said.

"This is your living room?" Elena asked.

"Living room, parlor, Sotheby's Auction," Damon said. "It's a little kitschy for my taste."

A small silence fell for a moment as I walked further in, eyes going around the room in wonder. I felt eyes on me, but chose to ignore them since I figured it was just Elena.

"I can see why my brother's so smitten," Damon said suddenly. "It's about time. For a while there, I never thought he'd never get over the last one."

That got my attention and I looked back at him to see Elena looking at him confused- again.

"Nearly destroyed him," Damon continued looking at me now.

"The last one?" I asked for Elena since she seemed to be at a loss for words.

"Yeah, Katherine," he answered. "His girlfriend?" He looked at Elena and realization set on his face. "Oh, you two haven't had the awkward exes conversation yet."

"Nope," Elena said uncomfortably looking up at the ceiling.

"Oops well, I'm sure it'll come up now," Damon said looking back at me. I looked back at him for a moment, trying to figure something out. For some reason I felt like he intended to tell Elena about Katherine, I just couldn't figure out why. "Or maybe he didn't want to tell you because he didn't want you to think he was on the rebound. I mean, that's how Katherine felt when Stefan failed to tell her about Elizabeth."

"Elizabeth?" Elena asked.

"Yeah, the first love," Damon said casually. "Got his heartbroken by that one. Then Katherine comes along, steals his heart, and that one didn't end so well either."

I tilted my head the slightest bit at him. He was still looking at me when he told Elena that. Could he tell I was wondering why he told her? What was it about this guy that was so familiar too? Since I came face to face with him I couldn't help but feel like...I've been around him before.

"We all know how those relationships end," Damon continued.

"You say it like every relationship is doomed to end," I said.

"I'm a fatalist," he said to me. We stared at each other for a moment before I saw Stefan walk up behind Damon and Elena. "Hello Stefan."

How did Damon...Stefan barely made a noise and he didn't even turn around. It could have been their uncle Zach coming in for all he knew.

"Elena, Sam," Stefan said. "I didn't know you two were coming over."

"I know, we should have called," Elena said apologetically as she began walking toward him. "I just-"

"Oh don't be silly. You're welcome any time. Both of you," Damon said looking from Elena back at me. "Aren't they Stefan?"

Stefan just stared at his brother, almost glared, and didn't answer.

"You know, I should break out the family photo albums. Or some home movies," Damon said. "BUT I have to warn you both, he wasn't always such a looker."

"Thank you for stopping by, Elena. Sam," Stefan said. Then he looked at his brother with that same look from before. "Nice to see you."

"Yeah, we should probably go," I said rubbing the back of my neck. I could sense a lot of tension between the two brothers and it was honestly making me a little uncomfortable. Besides, it was obvious Stefan didn't want us around Damon for whatever reason. I looked at Damon. "It was nice to meet you, Damon."

"Yeah, it was," Elena agreed. Damon took her hand and kissed it lightly.

"Nice meeting you, Elena," he said. I walked up, ready to leave, when he took my hand unexpectedly.

"And it was great meeting you too, Sam," he said kissing the top of my hand, his lips lingering there a while longer than Elena's. I stared into his eyes for a while even after he let go of my hand when Elena cleared her throat, motioning with her head that we should head out.

I blinked and walked after her, stopping when she stopped in front of Stefan who was staring at Damon with hard eyes.

"Stefan?" Elena said. He didn't move his eyes or anything. "Stefan?"

He finally stepped aside to let us pass, and returned his eyes to Damon.

"Come on," I said to Elena when she didn't move. She walked with me to the door and we got out as quickly as we could. That...had to be one of the weirdest things I've ever been through.

* * *

**-Third POV, after Elena and Sam leave-**

Damon whistled after the door closed, entertained with Stefan's cold eyes on him still.

"Great gal," he said talking about Elena. "Her sister, though, she's got spunk and she's even more breath taking up close. I like her. You, on the other hand, look pooped."

Stefan ignored the comment and stepped down into the room.

"Did you over-exert yourself today?" Damon asked. "Let me guess! Hospital."

"Someone had to clean up your mess," Stefan told him, finally talking as he walked more into the room past Damon.

"Well were you successful?" Damon asked. "Did the powers of persuasion work? Remember if you don't feed properly, none of those little tricks work."

"How long were Elena and Sam here?" Stefan asked.

"Were you worried, Stefan? Scared we may be doomed to repeat the past?" Damon asked chuckling. "Isn't that why you play your little game, 'I'm a high school human'?"

"I'm not playing any game."

"Of course you are. We both know the closest you'll ever get to humanity is when you rip it open and feed on it."

"What kind of game are you playing, Damon?" Stefan asked.

"Guess you'll just have to wait and see, won't you?" Damon asked with a smirk. He walked out of the room then, leaving Stefan alone.

* * *

**-Back to Sam-**

"He's on the rebound for the second time, and has raging family issues," Elena said. We were back at home and she was telling Aunt Jenna about our visit to Stefan's place.

"Well at least it's an ex-girlfriend," Jenna said positively. "Wait till you date a guy with mommy issues or cheating issues or amphetamine issues."

I laughed a bit and set the hot fudge down on the counter after I thought I had enough on my ice cream.

"His brother seemed to take an interest in Sam," Elena said.

"Oh really?" Jenna asked with a sly smile while I rolled my eyes. "Older or younger?"

"Older," I answered. "Older than me. Older than Stefan."

"Was he hot?"

"Very," I admitted. "But there was just something about him. Something not very trustworthy."

"Well if he was telling you about things Stefan wouldn't even tell you, then I wouldn't call it UNtrustworthy," Jenna said.

The door opened and Jeremy stepped in, making Jenna go in mother mode.

"Jeremy," she said. He ignored her and started going upstairs. Jenna rushed toward him. "Jeremy, where were you?"

"More stoner stories, look Jenna I get it. You were cool. And so that's- that's cool."

I sighed in disappointment. He was high.

"Oh no- no, no no!" she chucked her apple at him, which made me snicker a litlte.

"Ow, why?! Why- why did you do that?"

"Listen up! Quit ditching class or you're grounded. No discussion," Jenna said.

"Parental authority, I like it," Jeremy said clearly not taking her seriously. "Sleep tight." He continued up the stairs while Jenna glared after him. Elena sighed and I shook my head. I really needed to get him out of that hole he's in.

* * *

Chastity and I were walking around the town square, handing out programs for the town comet event. It took forever to create these things since Caroline was over my shoulder disapproving nearly every thing I did. I finally just stepped aside and told her to do what she wanted. I admit I lost patience faster than usual, but that's just because I was still thinking about how things went at Stefan's house and I was worried about Elena.

From the sounds of it, Stefan was just on the rebound again but I didn't want to believe it at the same time. He seemed like a really nice guy and that was just Damon's side of things. I couldn't help but think that things were very different from Stefan's point of view.

"Would you like a program?" Chastity offered a program to a woman with her daughter as the walked to the center. The woman smiled thankfully and took the program. "So you met his older brother. Hot or not?"

"Definitely hot," I said. "Like I told Jenna though, there was just something weird about him."

"Well maybe I can see into it," she said. "You know how Bonnie's Grams has been telling her that she's a witch? Well I told my aunt and guess what she said?"

"You too?" I guessed with a smile as I handed a guy a program.

"Yeah," she said. "She said that my dad's side of the family is also descended from Salem. She said we're not as strong as Bonnie's line, but we're still pretty strong."

"And you believe that?" I asked.

"Why shouldn't I? There's so much I've predicted and it's like it comes to me in visions and stuff. And I could have sworn that I lit a candle up in my mind last night."

"And the evidence stacks up," I said. "You just might be."

"Oh relax, I don't really believe it," she said. "I think she's just trying to be as crazy as Bonnie's Grams."

"Maybe," I said.

* * *

Later Chastity and I were walking around with our candles and Olivia after all the programs were handed out. We met up with Bonnie, Elena, and Caroline. Elena walked into Matt and he ended up lighting her candle while Adam came over and lit mine up.

"Thank you," I smiled.

"You're welcome," he said. He looked at me and I smiled. "So..."

"Uh uh, don't even think about it Hanson," Chastity cut in. "You know you're not getting a second chance."

"Nice to see you Chastity," he said with a sigh. I noticed Elena then walk away and I was about to go by her when I saw Stefan right behind her. I stayed in place, knowing that they needed to talk about things and that if Elena needed anything, she would come by me.

I held my candle up a little more and zoned back into the world when Chastity and Adam's bickering got a little annoying.

"Okay guys," I said holding up a hand. "Let's just enjoy the night. As friends," I said with a sharp look at Adam. Then I noticed Elena walk away, leaving Stefan alone with a sad look on his face. "On second thought-"

"Elena needs you," Adam said knowingly.

"Go ahead."

"Promise not to kill him, Chas?"

"I'll do my best," she said. I sighed. That was the best I was going to get from her so I just walked away, stopping when I was about to pass Stefan.

"Let me talk to her," I said. "Things are just complicated right now and...I know she really likes you. Just give it a little bit of time."

"Thank you, Sam," he said with a small smile. I smiled back and continued after Elena.

* * *

"I just don't know," Elena concluded as we came up to the grill where we agreed to meet everyone else. When I caught up to her, she told me about the small talk she had with Stefan and her doubts about having a relationship with him.

"Look you really like him, I can see that," I said. "And you deserve to be happy, but he just got here Lena. He said he's not really close to his brother and that Katherine and Elizabeth were a long time ago, so cut him a little slack. It must be hard for him to open up after two heartbreaks. It just sounds like you're a little scared about where this is going to go because you're so used to getting hurt, just like him."

"You're right," she sighed. "I just feel like I need a little bit more time before I go into anything."

"It's your life," I said. "If you feel like you need more time, take more."

She nodded and smiled at me. We walked inside and sat down at a table where Tyler, Caroline, Bonnie, and Matt already were with Chastity, Adam, and Adam's best friend Brian. We sat and talked for a while when Jeremy came up to us asking if we'd seen Vicki.

"You're her stalker, you tell us," Tyler said.

"I can't find her," Jeremy said freaking out and he had reason to. After what happened to her not too long ago, her disapperaring right now wasn't very comforting.

"She probably found somebody else to party with," Tyler said. "Sorry pill pusher, I guess you've been replaced."

"What's with the pill pusher?" Elena asked him.

"Ask him," Tyler told her. I furrowed my eyebrows and looked at Jeremy expectandly.

"You wanna do this right now?" Jeremy asked.

"Are you dealing?" Elena asked him.

"She's never gonna go for you," Tyler said to Jeremy.

"She already did. Over and over and over again," Jeremy said to him, rubbing it in his face. Tyler's smirk vanished and Elena and I exchanged glances. Well the cat's out of the bag now.

"Yeah right," Tyler said.

"You slept with Vicki Donovan?" Caroline asked in disbelief. Matt gave her a look. "I mean, Vicki Donovan slept with you?"

"There's no way," Tyler said.

"And I didn't even have to force her," Jeremy added. What was that a reference to? Was that what Tyler was doing in the woods with Vicki that night?

"What the hell is he talking about, Ty?" Matt asked Tyler.

"Nothing, man. Just ignore him, he's a punk," Tyler said bitterly. I could tell Elena was getting annoyed with this whole thing and she wanted to talk to Jeremy about that pill pusher comment, but all of this had to wait because Vicki was missing and given what happened before when she was alone, that wasn't a very good thing.

"You know what, let's just put all of this on hold and we all help find Vicki right now," I spoke up.

"Yeah I agree with Sam," Matt said.

"We'll check the bathrooms," Bonnie said as we began to split up.

"I'll check the square," Matt said.

"I'll come with you," Jeremy volunteered.

"Oh no, no, no," Elena said catching his arm. "You are coming with me."

"I'll look around here," I said. Elena nodded and walked away with Jeremy while I searched the grill for Vicki, hoping I wouldn't find her in the same state as before or worse.

* * *

"Anyway, Bonnie gave Stefan her phone and email and bam! It happned just like that when they touched," Chastity said. Elena, Jeremy, and I had gone home after Vicki was found and I was sure she was okay. Caroline, Chastity, Olivia, and Bonnie stayed behind at the grill and now Chastity was telling me about how Stefan found Vicki and Bonnie freaked when she touched him because she saw and felt something bad and cold. Bonnie didn't tell Caroline, only Chastity because she felt like Chastity would understand better.

"That's werid," I said. "Especially since it's not the first time something like that has happened to her."

"I feel like it's the witch thing," she said. "I can feel it too."

"Are you sure that's what it is? I mean with everything that happened to Vicki, maybe you guys are just freaked out is all."

"No, I'm positive of what it is. I'm just not sure if I think it because I'm sane or insane," she said. "Anyway, I gotta go. Olivia's bugging me to get off the phone. I'll talk to you tomorrow?"

"Yeah," I said. "Tomorrow."

"Okay then. Bye."

"Bye," I closed my phone and set my phone on my dresser top and walked out of my room to get some water in time to hear Jenna break down about not being mom. I stepped in to Jeremy's room just as she sat down on his bed.

"This is just the fear talking," Elena assured her. "You're a little scared, that's all."

Realization crossed her face and she looked at me. I knew she was thinking about her relationship with Stefan then and I smiled a little at her.

"We all are," I said to her and Jenna.

"I have to go do something," Elena said. Jenna nodded understandingly. "But are you going to be okay?"

"Even if she's not I'm here," I said. Jenna smiled at the both of us and Elena got up with a smile, and left Jer's room. "Go get him."

"I will," she smiled. She left and I sighed, walking in and sitting on the bed next to Jenna.

"It's your mom," she said. "I feel like I need to be her to be successful with you, especially Jeremy."

"You don't," I said. "You and I both know that no one can replace her and you're doing a great job as it is. Jeremy...he'll make it through what he's going through. You did, didn't you?"

"Yeah," she said. "I did. Even when it seemed impossible. And I have your mom to thank for that."

"And Jeremy is going to make it through," I said. "He has us. He has you, he has Elena, and he has me. And we won't give up on him no matter what."

"I know we won't," she smiled. She wrapped her arms around me and kissed the top of my head. "I think I would die if you and Elena weren't here. I love you, Sammie."

"Love you too Aunt Jenna," I smiled. Jeremy would make it through this drug thing. Jenna would get her confidence up. Elena would work things out with Stefan and they would be happy. Then everything would get better. Right? Right.


	3. Friday Night Bites

**Okay, so I haven't properly introduced the story or anything. This whole thing was based off a single dream I had and I decided to write a story based on said dream. **

**Yes. I had a dream about the Vampire Diaries. I am weird like that. I've also had dreams about Naruto, House M.D., Pretty Little Liars, and Friday the 13th. Am I strange? Absolutely. Am I insane? Probably.**

**No matter, I hope you guys enjoy my insanity!**

* * *

"Are you sure it's a good idea for Elena to be dating him so quickly?" Chastity asked me the next morning. "It seems like this all happened too quickly."

She and I were currently hanging a huge banner for the homecoming rally in the hallway. I looked over at her after I finished hanging my side of the banner.

"Weren't you on Bonnie, Caroline, and my side just the other day when we were telling her to go for it?" I asked.

"Well now Bonnie and I think she should take it slow," she insisted.

"Is this about that whole touch thing?" I asked her.

"Look, we're just worried about her is all. Remember we were the same way when you started dating Adam."

"There was a reason for that," I said. "You guys knew he had a reputation for cheating on his girlfriends and you wanted me to be careful."

"And it wasn't fun for me to even think I told you so," she said. "Okay, I'll let it go. You said Elena's happy, right?"

"She was singing in the shower this morning," I smiled. "She hasn't done that since our parents…"

"I get it," she said. "She's happy, you're happy she's happy, and…I'm happy."

The way she said it didn't convince me fully and I was going to say something when my cell phone vibrated in my pocket. I flipped it open and read that I had one new text message from Elena. I opened it and smiled.

**Tell Chastity that at eight o'clock she, Bonnie, and Stefan are coming over for dinner. They need to get to know him more.**

"What are you doing later tonight?" I asked her casually. She bit her lip and hummed in thought.

"Nothing, I'm free."

"Perfect. Then you are coming over at eight for dinner," I said. "Elena wants you and Bonnie to come over so you can have some bonding time with Stefan."

"I….Come to think of it I think I do have something going on tonight," she said quickly.

"You liar, you just said you were free," I fought.

"I just remembered I…I have something-"

"Chas, you said you would let it go," I reminded her. "If you really want to prove that you're happy for Elena, then come tonight. You'll see Stefan isn't so bad."

She sighed, but nodded.

"Okay," she said. "I'll be there."

* * *

"Hey Sam," Adam greeted as he sat in his desk next to me. "I saw the banner for homecoming. It's pretty cool, you did a great job."

"Thanks," I smiled. "Caroline was supposed to help hang it up this morning, but she never showed and she didn't answer her phone- which is out of character for her. You haven't seen her at all today have you?"

"Nope," he said. "Maybe she got held up by her mom or something."

"Maybe," I sighed unconvinced.

"Hey, stop worrying so much. I'm sure Caroline's fine."

"Right," I nodded. "Sorry. It's just….I can't help it."

"I know you can't," he smiled sadly. "Anyway, practice starts up again today. I'm going. Are you?"

I bit my lip. He was talking about football practice for him and cheerleading for me. I honestly never loved cheerleading, it was more of an Elena and mom thing. Speaking of, I wonder if Elena was even going. She and I didn't go to camp over the summer for obvious reasons, but I wondered if she even remembered that practice starts up again today. Whether or not we were staying on the team wasn't really something we talked about. It was sort of the last thing on our minds actually.

"I honestly don't know," I said. "I really don't feel like I have to. Mom wanted me to join with Elena because she and Elena made such a big deal out of it and I guess she didn't want me to feel like I couldn't do it too."

"I remember you told me that," Adam said. "Look you said you wanted things to go back to normal right?" I nodded. "Maybe doing things you used to do would help?"

I stared at him for a minute, unsure of what he was trying to get me to do exactly. He blinked.

"I…don't mean between us too," he said quickly. "I didn't mean to make it sound-"

"Of course not."

"I just…I respect your choice," he said. "I won't try to change your mind. I don't deserve to."

Most girls would revel in seeing their cheater of an ex-boyfriend beat himself up about cheating on her, but I was never like other girls.

"Don't do that to yourself," I told him. "Even though you hurt me at the worst possible time, I can't stand to see you make yourself feel so bad. I know you're a good guy and you know you made a mistake, but there's no reason for you to linger over it."

He nodded, slightly sad, but a smile rose up and he chuckled. This made me smile in confusion.

"What?" I asked.

"You know, every other girl came after me with razor blades and lemon juice. You…..you're not."

The bell rang and we turned in our seats when the teacher came in and ordered us to take our notebooks out. When his back was turned, a folded piece of paper landed on top of my open notebook. It came from Adam's side of me and I opened it under my desk.

_**Give cheerleading one last try. If you hate it, I'll get off your back and watch it when Caroline comes after you.**_

I smiled and looked over at him. He was looking at me expectantly.

"Okay," I mouthed.

* * *

"You're here!" Bonnie exclaimed when I walked up in a tank top and short shorts. I shrugged.

"I got convinced," I said hugging her back when she hugged me. She pulled away with a smile and Elena came up to me next.

"Can't be sad girls forever, can we?" she asked. I shook my head and she pulled me into a hug.

"Let's get stretching," I said pulling my hair up in a ponytail when Elena let me go. The three of us sat down and began our stretches.

"Sorry I'm late!" a frantic Chastity shouted a while later as she ran up with her tank half way up. "Please don't kill m- oh Caroline's not here, thank god! Nobody tell on me!"

All the girls nodded and agreed to keep her late arrival a secret.

"Two things Chas. One, pull your shirt down. You're giving the guys a show," I said referring to the guys over at football practice who were ogling at Chastity.

She pulled her shirt up a little bit teasingly before yanking it down all the way and flipping them off and making them look away. "Two, where were you that you're so late."

"Making a side dish for tonight," she said. "If I'm coming over for dinner then I have to bring something. That's my mom's rule."

"Oh that reminds me, Bonnie, you're coming over for dinner tonight at eight," Elena said suddenly.

"I am?" she asked with a smile.

"Yeah, you, Elena, Chastity, me, and Stefan," I told her. That made her smile drop and she looked down at her stretched out leg.

"Tonight's no good," she said.

"Stop that," I said. "Chastity tried to pull the same thing this morning when I invited her."

"Yeah Bonnie, you may as well give it up," she said. "It won't work. They're determined."

"Where is Caroline? Have you guys tried calling her?"

"Don't try to change the subject, Bonnie Bennett," Elena said. "You're coming over."

Bonnie sighed and her shoulders drooped.

"Fine," she said. "I'll come."

"Okay am I the only one getting a little freaked out by Caroline not being here still?" Chastity asked.

"I tried calling her, she's not answering," Olivia said as she came over by us.

"Where is she?" Bonnie asked.

"I don't know," Elena said after she took a drink of water. "It's not like her."

"I'm gonna try her again," Olivia told us.

I sighed and leaned on Elena. Just then, a light blue convertible camaro drove up and in it were two very recognizable people.

"Uh…" Elena began. Bonnie, Olivia, and Chastity all turned and looked at the car.

"Oh my god," Olivia said. Caroline leaned over and kissed Damon on the lips. Oddly enough, I felt like yanking her off of him when she did and it kind of freaked me out feeling that way.

"That must be the mystery guy from the grill," Bonnie said.

"That's not a mystery guy," I said as Elena and I started to stand up seeing Caroline was finally here and all. "That's Damon Salvatore."

"Salvatore!" Bonnie gasped. "As in Stefan?"

Caroline smirked and got out of the car, clearly loving all the attention she was getting. She strutted over to us and smiled at Elena and I.

"I got the other brother," she said. Then to me mostly "Hope you don't mind."

"Not at all," I said biting back the insults. Seriously, this whole feeling I felt toward Caroline right now….wasn't like me. It..kind of scared me.

"Sorry I'm late girls! I, uh, was busy," she said.

I rolled my eyes as she started talking and looked over at Damon. He lifted his eyebrows and smirked at me. Then with a wink, he drove away. There was something about him that I didn't trust. I didn't know what it was. It was as weird as the feeling that I've seen him somewhere before. I ignored the feeling and finally started paying attention to Caroline.

She set the music up for our routine and ordered us to start. I looked around at the other girls and did my best to keep up, which was working out for me but I could tell it wasn't for Elena.

"Elena, sweetie, why don't you just observe today? 'Kay?" Caroline said with her 'friendly' smile. "Sam, you're doing great for not going to camp. Everyone else, keep going! Ok. Do it again, let's go!"

Elena walked back so she was behind all the other girls and tried doing what the rest of us were. I turned back forward and began doing the moves. I was really starting to get the hang of this now, but…it didn't feel the same as it did before.

* * *

**-Third POV-**

Stefan pulled on his long sleeve black shirt as he entered his room, but stopped after a couple steps when he saw his older brother sitting at his desk with his feet up.

"How were tryouts?" Damon asked. "Did you make the team?"

Stefan didn't say anything since he just noticed his journal was in Damon's hands, open.

"Very Emerson the way you reveal your soul with so many-"

Stefan sped toward him and snatched his journal out of Damon's hands.

"Adjectives," Damon finished with a small smirk. He chuckled at the look Stefan gave him.

"What are you doing here?" Stefan asked blankly.

"I've come to apologize," Damon replied sitting upright. "I've been doing some thinking, some soul searching and….I want us to start over. We need to put the past behind us."

He stood up while Stefan eyed him warily, clearly not believing a word Damon was saying.

"You're my little brother, and if you want to live a normal, happy human life….I want that for you. Maybe I can do it too. I can learn to be a non-living, living person. Maybe there's hope for the both of us."

Stefan just stared at him, waiting for the laugh or the 'NOT' part to come in. Just when he was expecting it, Damon broke his serious face and started laughing. Stefan nodded and looked off to the side. Damon continued laughing, walking past Stefan now, and slapped his back.

"You know, it doesn't have to be this way, Damon," Stefan said.

"Of course it doesn't," Damon said. "I saw Elena today, b.t.w- that means 'by the way'- she was at cheerleading practice with that cute yet sexy little sister of hers. The two of them looked so perky in their little short shorts. Just-" he smiled at the memory of seeing Samantha. He knew seeing Caroline kiss him bothered her, even if she didn't know it herself. He smirked inwardly when he saw his brother step forward. "Simmer down, I didn't even go near them. I've got my own cheerleader now. Ooh, that reminds me. I gotta run. I have a date. Sweaty palms-" he rubbed his hands together then blew in them. "-wish me luck."

He walked out of Stefan's room to go get Caroline while Stefan glared after his brother. Who knew what would happen to that poor girl later?

* * *

"You explain it," Chastity said as Elena and I walked around the kitchen getting stuff ready for our dinner tonight while Bonnie listened to her more intently. "Last night, I'm watching 'Nine-O', commercial breaks come on and I'm like 'I bet it's that phone commercial' and sure enough it's that guy and the girl with the bench, he flies to Paris, and he flies back. They take a picture."

"Oh come on," I said with a laugh. "That commercial's on a constant loop."

"Fine, well how about this? Today I'm obsessed with numbers. Three numbers. I keep seeing 8, 14, and 22. How weird is that?" she said.

"I've been seeing the same numbers," Bonnie said. Elena and I exchanged glances before looking back at our best friends.

"You have?" Chastity asked shocked.

"Yeah, they just keep flashing in my mind and it's just so weird!"

"Oh my god, guys," I said.

"Maybe we should play the lottery," Elena said with a serious face. Bonnie and Chastity gave us a look and we laughed.

"Have you talked to your aunt?" I asked Chastity. "Or your Grams, Bonnie?"

"They're just gonna say it's because we're witches," Chastity said while Bonnie nodded in agreement.

"I don't want to be a witch," Bonnie whined.

"Me neither. Do you want to be a witch?" Chastity asked me and Elena.

"I don't want to be a witch," I said. "And putting the food in a nice bowl, Elena, isn't fooling anybody."

"Hey, it's your fault too. You were too lazy to cook," she said.

"So were you," I shot back. "Okay, serving spoons. Where are the serving spoons?"

"Middle drawer on your left," Bonnie said as I walked toward the drawers. I looked at her and she just shrugged. So I opened the drawer she said and there were the serving spoons. I lifted one out of the drawer.

"Nailed it," Chastity commented.

"Okay so you've been in this kitchen like a thousand times," Elena said.

"Yeah that's it," Bonnie said sarcastically.

The doorbell rang then and Bonnie and Chastity stiffened the slightest bit.

"Okay he's here," Elena said clapping her hands together. "Don't be nervous, you two."

"Yeah, just be your normal, loving selves," I said while they both looked at us with a face that screamed they wanted to get out of here. Elena went to answer the door while I picked up the last two plates.

"I'm gonna set these plates on the table," I said to the two as I walked out into the dining room.

* * *

So this dinner….wasn't working out as well as I hoped. Stefan was at the head of the table while Elena was on his right and Bonnie on his left. I was sitting right next to Elena and Chastity was sitting across from me next to Bonnie. Both of them weren't speaking to Stefan, which made it all the more awkward. Poor Stefan really didn't think Bonnie liked him and this was doing nothing but confirming it.

"Did Tanner give you a hard time today?" Elena asked in an effort to start up a conversation.

"Well, he let me on the team, so I must have done something right," Stefan replied. Elena smiled.

"He'll get used to you," I told him. "He's not used to people making him look bad. Personally, I think it was about time."

He smiled at me.

"You guys should have seen Stefan today," Elena said to all of us. "Tyler threw a ball right at him, and-"

"Yeah, I heard," Bonnie said unimpressed. Chastity looked down at her plate.

"I did too," I said giving the two a look. "I really wish I would have seen it though. By the way, Chastity, this cheese bread is delicious. Chastity is one of the best cooks, Stefan."

"I can taste that," Stefan said as he took a bite of her cheese bread. "Did you make this all from scratch?"

"Yeah, family recipe," she replied dully.

"Why don't you guys tell Stefan about your families?" Elena suggested.

"Um, divorced. No mom. Live with my dad," Bonnie said glancing at Stefan briefly before returning her eyes to her plate.

"Married. Older sister. Really close with my dad's sister," Chastity said. I rolled my eyes.

"About the witches, you guys," I said. That caught Stefan's attention and he looked over at me with curious eyes. "Bonnie and Chastity's families have a lineage of witches."

"It's really cool," Elena added giving Bonnie and Chastity an urging look for them to talk.

"Cool isn't the word I'd use," Chastity said.

"Well it's certainly interesting," Stefan said. "I'm not to versed, but I do know that there's a history of Celtic druids that migrated here in the 1800s."

"My family came by way of Salem," Chastity told him.

"Mine too," Bonnie said.

"Really?" Stefan said. They nodded. "Salem witches?"

"Yeah," Bonnie said with a small smile.

"I'd say that's pretty cool."

"Really? Why?"

I smiled. It was about time they got into a conversation!

"Salem witches are heroic examples of individualism and non-conformity," Stefan explained. Bonnie and Chastity smiled, which made me and Elena smile more than we were. This was what we were hoping for!

"Yeah, they are," Chastity said.

The doorbell rang and we all looked toward the door with confused faces. Who could that be?

"Um…I'll get it," I said setting my fork down and getting up.

I walked up toward the door and opened it, surprised by who I saw there.

"Surprise!" Caroline exclaimed. "Bonnie said you were doing dinner, so we brought desert."

I finally noticed Damon was behind her.

"Oh," I said.

"Hope you don't mind," Damon said.

Caroline walked in past me and handed Elena the desert as she and Stefan walked over. Stefan stood in the doorway, staring his brother down.

"What are you doing here?" he asked as Elena and Caroline went to the kitchen.

"Waiting for Samantha to invite me in," Damon explained.

"Oh yeah, you can just-"

"No, no, no," Stefan said quickly. "He-he can't uh….He can't stay."

I looked over at Damon. Then why was he….

"Can you, Damon?" Stefan said.

The two brothers had a stare down- again- while I watched awkwardly.

"Get in here," Caroline said to Damon. I jumped and turned. When did she get back here?

"We're just…finishing up," Stefan said looking at me.

"It's fine," I shrugged. I didn't want to tell Caroline and Damon to beat it after they just got here. I'd feel really rude and mom and dad raised me better than that. I looked back at Damon with a smile. "Just come on in."

He smiled and looked at Stefan, stepping into the house. Stefan looked at me as if I had just invited Hitler into the house. I looked at him with a raised eyebrow asking what's up. He looked at Damon's back as he admired the house.

"You have a beautiful home, Samantha," Damon said looking back at me.

"Thank you," I said. This was about to get interesting.

* * *

"I just…I cannot believe that Mr. Tanner let you on the team," Caroline laughed looking at Stefan. "Ugh, Tyler must be seething. But good for you, go for it."

Chastity rolled her eyes at Caroline, and nudged me. She gave me that look that said she was ready to jump on her and rip her hair out by the roots. I shook my head warningly.

"That's what I always tell him," Damon said. "You have to engage. You can't just sit there and wait for life to come to you. You have to go get it!"

"Yeah, Elena wasn't as lucky as Sam today," Caroline said. "It's only because you missed summer camp, Elena. Sam's just always been great at catching on to things. God, I don't know how you're ever going to learn the routines."

"We'll work together," I said coming to my sister's defense. "She'll get it in no time."

"Yeah, I'll help them out too," Bonnie said.

"Me too and I'm sure Olivia won't have a problem helping out," Chastity added.

"Where is Olivia tonight anyway? It's weird we're all here without her," I said to change the topic since Elena looked like she was ready to hurt Caroline too.

"She's probably out chasing your brother," Caroline said. "I love her, but I don't see the attraction. No offense."

And there she goes again.

"Anyway, I guess we can put Elena in the back….Sam would definitely go in the middle. I'd put you in the front, but you're still a little behind too," Caroline mused.

"You don't seem like the cheerleader type, Elena," Damon said. "I don't see much of it in you either, Samantha."

"Oh, it's just cause their parents died," Caroline said bluntly. "Yeah, I mean they're just totally going through a blah phase. They used to be way more fun."

Bonnie gave her an 'are you serious' look while Chastity….well...

"Oh my god, could you be more shallow you no-brain, barbie?!" she snapped at her.

I let out a sigh and ran my fingers through my hair.

"Here we go," I said.

"Do you have any sensitivity at all or are you just a shallow little brat 24/7?!" she demanded. "You can't think of a better way to ruin the evening than to barge in here and go on and on pointing out Elena's cheerleading flaws and talking about how she and Sam aren't themselves! News flash, cliche blondie: You wouldn't be the same if you lost both of your parents, almost died with them or almost lost your older sister with them!"

"I didn't mean to make it sound that way," Caroline said quickly. "I said it all with complete sensitivity!"

"Yeah, I'm sure you did," Chastity said.

"Okay, let's calm down here," I said. "Caroline, Elena and I understand and Chastity is sorry-"

"Chastity is not sorry!"

"Chas," I warned. She huffed and crossed her arms. "Anyway, let's just not fight right now."

It was silent in the room before someone decided to break it.

"I'm sorry, Elena and Samantha. I know what it's like to lose both your parents," Damon said sincerely. "In fact, Stefan and I have watched almost every single person we've ever cared about die."

"We don't need to get into that right now, Damon," Stefan said.

"Ah you know what, you're right, Stef. I'm sorry. The last thing I wanted to do was bring THEM up," Damon said. Elena looked at Stefan while I gave Damon a suspicious look. Why was he doing this again?

I was now in the kitchen putting some dishes in the dishwasher after Elena and Stefan cleared the table. Everyone else was in the living room since I told them I could handle the clean up in here.

"One more," Damon said entering the room with a glass.

"Oh, thank you," I smiled taking it. It slipped from my hand and he caught it just before it hit the ground.

I laughed as he held it up proudly. I tucked a lock of my hair behind my hair before taking it.

"Nice save," I complimented.

"I like you," he said pointing at me. He walked around and leaned against the counter on the other side of the dishwasher. "You know how to laugh. And you make Stefan smile as well as Elena, which is why I like her too, and the whole Stefan smile is something I haven't seen in a very long time."

"Earlier….did you mean Katherine? And Elizabeth?" I asked curiously.

"Mm-hmm," he confirmed taking the plate I had and placing it in the dishwasher.

"How did Katherine die? And what about Elizabeth?" I asked.

"Well, unfortunately, Elizabeth died as well. And in a fire, both of them. Tragic fire."

"The same one? Recently?" I asked.

"Same one and well, it seems like it was yesterday," he said.

I sighed and looked back down in the sink. A fire seemed like a terrible way to die. And did they know each other? Or was it just a coincidence that they died in the same fire? I didn't want to pry into that though.

"If you're wondering why, it could just be that they were almost always together," he said. "The two of them were sisters."

"Stefan dated sisters?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Indeed he did," Damon confirmed.

"What were they like?" I asked out of sheer curiosity.

"They were both beautiful, a lot like you and Elena in that department," Damon said. "I think Elizabeth drew more eyes than Katherine, though. Katherine was just very complicated and selfish, and at times not very kind, but very sexy and seductive. Elizabeth was almost her opposite. She was kinder than Katherine, but just as complicated. She was a very charming girl, hard to read, just as sexy and seductive. She displayed a childlike innocence and it intrigued almost everyone around her."

I nodded. "So which of you dated who first?" I asked handing him a plate.

He took it from me with a chuckle.

"Nicely deduced," he said. "Ask Stefan. I'm sure his answer differs from mine."

He closed the dishwasher with that and smiled at me. I smiled back a little and went to folding the napkins and placemats.

"I'd quit cheerleading if I were you and Elena," he said sitting down next to the counter I was at.

"Why do you say that?" I asked.

"Oh I saw her at practice. She looked miserable," he explained as he helped me fold. "And you didn't look all too thrilled either."

"You saw that?"

"Am I wrong?"

"We used to love it," I sighed. "It was fun. Things are just….different this year. Everything that used to matter doesn't anymore."

"So don't let it. Quit, move on. Problem solved, ta-da."

I smiled and let out a chuckle.

"Some things could matter again," I insisted.

"Maybe," he said. "But it seems a little unrealistic to me."

I bit my lip and looked down. "I'm sorry."

He furrowed his eyebrows.

"About Katherine and Elizabeth," I continued. "You lost them too."

He stared at me in what seemed to be shock for a little bit before Chastity came in.

"Hey," she said. "Need some help?"

"Sure why not?" Damon answered.

* * *

I was in my room alone, preparing for bed. I had just put my hair up in a ponytail when I heard the sound of glass shattering against the floor downstairs. I ran to the top of the stairs and looked down, alarmed.

"Elena?!" I called down. There was no answer. I ran halfway down and peeked as best I could into the kitchen, seeing no one still. I did, however, see a pile of broken glass near the island counter.

Sighing and figuring that Jeremy probably came home and put it on the edge, I walked down and grabbed a broom from the closet. When I closed the door and turned toward the kitchen, I ran into Damon. Literally. I jumped.

"Damon?" I asked confused. Veins popped up around his eyes and they turned black and….he grew….fangs….I screamed.

I gasped, sitting up in my bed abruptly. I blinked and looked around my room. It was just a dream. Only a stupid dream, I thought as I ran my hands through my hair. I shook my head and got up, heading toward the door and grabbing the glass from my dresser for water.

* * *

The next morning, I stood in front of my mirror in my room with a towel wrapped around me and my arms folded. I stared at the uniform set out on my bed behind me before glancing at the picture of me wearing it with Elena in the exact same thing. We were smiling and had our arms wrapped around each other, our pom poms getting in each other's face. I sighed and bit my lip, looking up at myself in the mirror. That just…it didn't seem like me anymore. Maybe Damon was right. Maybe I shouldn't let cheerleading matter anymore because maybe…it wasn't supposed to. Maybe this was apart of who I was now. And maybe I needed to accept that.

* * *

"So you quit," Chastity said later that day.

"Yupp," I confirmed. "I quit. I'm a quitter."

"Don't say that," she said. "I think this is the first thing you quit on since….since Kristen Stewart."

"I haven't completely given up on her," I fought. "I still think she can be a great actress. And not 'hey I'm in a popular movie series' good actress, but legit good."

"Right," she rolled her eyes. "Oh hey, I wanted to give this to you."

She lifted up a beautiful heart shaped locket to me smiling. I smiled back and held it, looking at it in awe.

"It's beautiful," I said. "Where did you get it?"

"I had it lying around," she said. "I wanted you to have it. It seems like a Sam thing."

"Is that a good thing?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes," she smiled. "Here."

I took it slowly, smelling something on it. I lifted it to my nose and sniffed it.

"Is that rose?" I asked her. She looked down before quickly looking back up at me.

"It's an herb," she said. "My…aunt said it was for good luck. I figured you could use it more than me."

"Your aunt?"

"Yeah, I know what you're thinking but my mom confirmed it. She said our family's been growing the herb for generations."

"Family secret?"

"You could say that."

"Well I love it," I said as I put it on. "I'll never take it off."

"Good," she said with some relief. I wondered what that was about, but I let it go. "Anyway have you told Caroline about you giving up your spot on the team?"

"Uh…."

"Crap," she said suddenly. I stiffened.

"She's right behind me isn't she?" I whispered. She nodded and I turned, facing the girl with the raised eyebrow and hand on her hip.

"And you're not in uniform because?" she asked. Here we go….

* * *

I was standing by Elena at the ralley. Turns out, Caroline was in a pretty good mood so she didn't go that ballistic on us for quitting. Adam did need to step in once or twice to defend me, but I didn't think it was as bad as it could have been.

Mr. Tanner gave his pep speech, praising Stefan on how great a player he was and how our team was finally going to beat the other team. Well, we may actually have a chance with Stefan on the team. Now if only Tyler would get his head in the game and quit trying to get in fights with Jeremy…..

People cheered, clapped, and bounced around in the crowd. I tried to blend in with them before I heard Vicki in the back.

"Stop, you're hurting him! Tyler!" she shouted.

Elena and I exchanged glances before following everyone to where her shouts were coming from. Jeremy was on his back on the ground, Tyler on top of him punching him. Stefan quickly ran up to them.

"Hey, he's down! Enough!" he said grabbing Tyler's fist.

Tyler got off of Jeremy and punched Stefan in the stomach. Oddly enough, Stefan didn't even flinch. Then Jeremy picked up a broken glass bottle and swung it at Tyler just as he swung at Stefan and Stefan blocked him, sending him off to the side. He ended up slashing Stefan's hand with the glass, Matt pulled Tyler to the side and began shouting at him, while Elena rushed over to Jeremy.

"What the hell, Jeremy?" she demanded.

"Lift your head up, you're bleeding," I said noting his bloody nose.

"I'm fine, okay?" he said impatiently.

"Yeah you smell fine," Elena said. She was right. His breath wreaked of alcohol.

"Just stop, ok?" he said annoyed before walking away. I watched him before remembering that he cut Stefan with that glass. I was about to join him and Elena to make sure he was okay before Adam came up to me.

"Hey," he said. "Are you okay? What was that about?"

"It….Jeremy was just fighting with Tyler," I said. "Nothing new unfortunately."

"And how's Stefan?" he asked looking over my shoulder at my sister and him.

"He's-" I looked over too and saw him holding his hand up to my sister, no cut at all. I furrowed my eyebrows, sure that I saw a huge gash on his hand earlier. "-fine. By the looks of it."

"Maybe Jeremy missed. I thought I heard someone say he got Stefan good."

"Guess not," I said slowly, watching as Stefan walked away from Elena. What was going on? I know that Jeremy cut Stefan, I saw the blood…

* * *

Elena and I walked toward the cheerleading team together. Caroline was telling Tiki to hold the sign still and straight while everyone else was either rolling their eyes at her or ignoring her completely. Bonnie and Chastity walked up to us.

"Hey," Chastity said. "Where have you two been?"

"Can I ask you guys a serious question and you give me a really serious no-joke response?" Elena asked the both of them. They looked at each other before looking at me.

"It's a legit question," I said.

"Of course, what is it?" Bonnie asked.

"The bad mojo," Elena said. "When you touched Stefan and you had that reaction-"

"You know what, forget I said that. Your little dinner party plot totally won me over," Bonnie said.

"Yeah me too," Chastity said. "He's a good guy."

"No, guys, seriously. What was it?" I asked them.

"Did you see something or…."

"It wasn't clear like a picture," Bonnie said shaking her head. "Like today, I keep seeing those same numbers Chastity and I told you about- 8, 14, 22."

"Yeah," I said letting them know I was caught on.

"Well….when Bonnie touched Stefan, it was a feeling," Chastity explained.

"And it vibrated through me and it was cold, and it-"

She stopped suddenly, biting her lip and looking like she was wondering if she should continue or not. Chastity looked at her, encouraging her to go on.

"And what?" Elena asked.

"It was death," Bonnie concluded. "It's what I imagine death to be like."

What….Elena and I stared at them for a minute, trying to see if they were absolutely serious. When neither even cracked a smile, we looked at each other. What did that mean?

* * *

I walked to Elena's car alone later after we talked to Bonnie and Chastity and put the last of the contents from my cheerleading locker in the trunk, closing it and locking the car. I turned around and jumped when I noticed Damon right behind me.

"You scared me," I gasped. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm hiding from Caroline," he whispered.

"And why is that?" I whispered back.

"I needed a break," he explained. "She..talks more than I can listen."

"That could be a sign," I said with a small smile.

"Well, she's awfully young."

"Not much younger than you are," I pointed out. He chuckled a little, but there was a certain look in his eye that said he didn't completely agree.

"I don't see it going anywhere in the bigger picture. I think she'd drive me crazy," he said. I felt like I needed to defend her then.

"Caroline does have some really annoying traits," I said thinking back to the dinner party where she relentlessly talked about how much less fun Elena and I were now that our parents had died. "But we've been friends since I met her when her and my sister were in first grade. And that means something to me."

"Duly noted. I'm sorry if I make you uncomfortable. That's not my intention," he said, clearly faking it.

"Yes, it is," I said. "Otherwise you wouldn't put an alternate meaning behind everything you say to me and my sister."

He smiled and shook his head a bit.

"You're right," he said. "I do have other intentions, but so do you."

"Really?" I asked raising an eyebrow.

"Mm-hmm," he smirked. "I see 'em. You want me."

"Excuse me?" I asked with a disbelieving smile.

"I get to you. You find yourself drawn to me. You're curious about me. You think about me even when you don't want to think about me. Elena got the mysterious new boy and along with him comes his hot older brother who's just as much as a mystery. I bet you even dreamed about me-" Kay that part was weird…"-You want me and right now, you want to kiss me," he said, his eyes dilating a little. He got closer to me and his lips just brushed against mine before I shoved him away and slapped him.

"I don't know who you think you are or what you think you're doing, but I can assure you I really want nothing to do with you," I said. "And I don't know what happened in the past, but let's get one thing straight. I am not Katherine. And I am not Elizabeth."

I stormed past him, trying with all my might not to think about how his lips on mine made me shiver with delight.

* * *

**-Third POV-**

Damon clapped after Matt walked away from Stefan. Stefan turned around and looked at his brother.

"Isn't that nice?" Damon asked sarcastically. "Stefan joins a team, makes a friend. It's all so, 'rah, rah, go team, yeah!'."

"Not tonight," Stefan said beginning to walk away. "I'm done with you."

Damon appeared before him quickly, much to Stefan's dismay.

"Nice trick with Samantha," Damon complimented. "I assume you did the same with Elena. Let me guess- vervain in the necklace? Who'd you compel to give it to her? Her friend Chastity?"

Stefan furrowed his eyebrows. He gave Elena a necklace and intended to give another to Sam. He didn't know that she already had one….who gave it to her? Was it really Chastity? Did she know?

"I admit, I was a bit surprised," Damon continued ignoring Stefan's clear surprise. "It's been a while since anyone could resist my compulsion. Where'd you get them?"

"Does it matter?" he asked rhetorically, choosing to go with letting Damon think he gave the lockets to both girls for the sake of keeping Damon away from Sam's friend.

"Guess I could just seduce Samantha the old-fashioned way. I'd have to get around Elena though, she seems like the type to bring out the claws when it comes to her little sister and brother," Damon said as Stefan walked past him calmly. "Or I could just…eat her. She does smell ridiculously delicious. I don't know how you contain yourself around her without taking just a tiny sip."

Stefan stopped walking and turned back around.

"No," he said. "You're not gonna hurt her, Damon. Her or Elena."

"No?" Damon challenged walking toward his brother.

"Because deep down inside, there is a part of you that feels for her. Samantha," he said. Damon gave him a incredulous look. "I was worried that you had no humanity left inside of you, that you may have actually become the monster that you pretend to be."

"Who's pretending?" Damon said.

"Then kill me," Stefan said.

"Well, I'm- I'm tempted."

"No, you're not," Stefan told him. "You've had lifetimes to do it and yet, here I am. I'm still alive. And there you are. You're still haunting me. After 145 years. Elizabeth is dead-" Damon's face showed a sliver of emotion at the mention of her name. "-And you hate me because you loved her, and you torture me because you still do. And that, my brother, is your humanity."

Damon's face was unreadable after Stefan's small speech. He didn't get to say anything because Mr. Tanner was coming toward them, calling Stefan.

"Salvatore!" he said coming up behind Stefan. "What the hell? We've got a game to play!"

Stefan looked from him back to Damon.

"If that's my humanity…" Damon said. "Then what's this?"

He sped toward Mr. Tanner, latching on to his neck with his fangs. Mr. Tanner screamed and was soon dropped to the ground. Damon's vampire face now had blood and he turned back to his brother.

"Anyone, any time, any place," he said to Stefan. Stefan stared at his brother in shock. Looks like he didn't have so much humanity after all.

* * *

**-Sam-**

I paced around my bedroom, waiting for my brother and sister to get home. I really hoped Jeremy was safe, he hadn't answered his phone for either of us. Matt just called me and told me that Mr. Tanner was dead, killed by that same animal that attacked Vicki in the woods. I came home early because Elena wanted me safe before she went back for Jeremy and Stefan. I didn't want her going alone, telling her that I'd be fine, but she insisted that I come home because I could be a bite sized snack for whatever animal was out there.

When I got the text from Elena saying she found both boys, I sighed with relief and sat down by my window. I thought about Damon and what happened earlier before the game. Whether I wanted to admit it or not, he was right. I really did want to kiss him then and there was something intriguing about him, but….I could sense that he had ulterior motives. He wanted to mess with his brother, but I wasn't quite sure why. Then I thought back to the dream I had. He looked demonic. Like a….no. That was just some weird dream.

Then what about what Bonnie felt when she touched Stefan? And Chastity and her with the numbers? It was all so…so weird. I touched the locked on my neck and sighed. I felt like things around here were going to change a lot. Maybe not all for the better.

* * *

**-Third POV-**

Later that night, Elena and Jeremy were sound asleep in their rooms as was Jenna. Sam was his main focus right now though. She looked so peaceful when she slept, something he'd never witnessed before since Elizabeth was always awake before him in the morning and asleep last at night. He watched her sleep, fighting back the feelings surging through him while at the same time embracing them.

It'd been years since he felt this way and he never thought he would again. After she died….after he swore to make his brother's life hell…..he thought he would never feel this again. But he was alone in the presence of a sleeping girl and he could admit to himself, in his mind at least, that he genuinely cared for this girl. Samantha Gilbert. She was a little like her look-a-like, but not by much. She was far sweeter, in personality and scent.

He couldn't help himself. He needed to touch her. So he allowed his hand to reach out and stroke her cheek as he thought about the almost kiss they shared. He wanted to, less for the sake of annoying hit brother and more for just wanting to feel her lips pressed against his. She stirred a little, alerting him that she was about to wake up.

Sam opened her eyes. No one was in her room as she had sensed, but her lamp was on. She sat up a little to turn it off before returning to a dreamless sleep.


	4. Family Ties

**Hi hi! So I wanted to let you all know that the reason so many updates are coming in now is because I already have this story posted up on Wattpad and I'm up to Haunted on there. I'm just trying to get to the same point, then I'm going to update them both at the same time when I get the chance.**

**I more than likely will not update as often as I am now when the story is up to speed with the other, but I will make an effort to not take months to post new chapters.**

**Got it? We good? Great! Enjoy!**

* * *

**-Third POV-**

_Sam's eyes snapped open as a loud rattling came from downstairs. She got out of bed quickly, thinking it was Jeremy coming in late so she could tell him to quiet down before he woke Jenna and Elena. Sam opened her door and stepped toward the railing in front of her. There was no more noise._

_"Hello?" Sam called. Another noise. "Jeremy?"_

_A shadow passed down over the stairs and she went down there to see if it really was Jeremy. Sam stepped in to the dark kitchen, looking around curiously for her brother or someone else._

_"Hello?" she said again, flicking the light switch. It didn't work. Suddenly she heard the T.V. go on and she walked slowly toward it, seeing the reporter Logan Fell on the screen._

_"This is Logan Fell coming to you live from the streets of Mystic Falls with breaking news of another deadly animal attack. The wild animal terrorizing the citizens of Mystic Falls has claimed another victim. Local high school students, Elena and Samantha Gilbert," he said as their pictures popped up on the screen. "Police are certain that forensic evidence will confirm that this is the same animal responsible for recent attacks."_

_She started breathing heavily, her eyes glued to the screen as she slowly backed away. Did he say Elena and she were the ones killed by that animal? No, they couldn't have been. She was alive, she was right here and Elena was alive! Elena was not dead!_

_"You know it's coming next," she heard a familiar voice say from behind her. _

_She gasped and looked over her shoulder, seeing a smirking Damon standing in front of the back door. Sam made a run for it, running out of the kitchen and to the front door. She quickly opened it only to come face to face with Damon again. _

_She screamed and slammed it shut, turning around to see him standing in the hall. How did he get there when he was just outside? Sam screamed again and pulled at her hair as she sank to the floor, panicking and waiting for him to kill her and just get it over with. _

_However, when she looked up again, he was gone. She began walking forward, still panting out of fear. Her eyes went all over the place, looking for him in the shadows of the house. She screamed when she felt her head being pushed to the side and fangs sink in her neck._

Stefan's eyes snapped open and he gasped, snapping up in a sitting position on his bed as he awoke from his nightmare. Damon casually glanced over his shoulder at his little brother.

"Bad dream?" he asked. "Ah. Do you know how easy it was to get into your head just now?" He tasked. "You really need some human blood. It might even the playing field."

Stefan sat still, trying to gather himself and ignoring his brother.

"Football reference," Damon said when Stefan said nothing. "Too soon?"

Stefan got out of bed, angry, and sped over to the table and picked up a knife. He threw it at Damon, watching as it planted itself deep in his chest. Damon looked down at it boredly, like he expected it, before standing up and pulling it out.

"All right, I deserved that," he said. "But I just wanted to let you know, they caught the culprit. The animal responsible for killing Coach Tanner and all those people."

"What are you talking about?" Stefan asked.

"It was a mountain lion. Really big one," Damon explained as he used his hands to demonstrate- or exaggerate- how big the animal was. "It attacked a hunter this morning. It's all over the news. 'Deadly beast captured. All's well in Mystic Falls'," he said dramatically.

"Why would you cover your tracks?" Stefan questioned.

Damon walked toward the window. "I've decided to stay a while. I'm just having way too much fun here with you and Elena. The most fun I'm having, though, is with that- again- adorable, yet sexy little sister of hers."

"Can't touch her now," Stefan said still wondering why Chastity gave her that vervain locket. "You can't touch either of them."

"Well, the vervain keeps me out of their heads," Damon pointed out as he slowly walked toward Stefan. "Maybe that's not my target. Believe it or not, Stefan, some girls don't need my persuasion. Some girls just can't resist my good looks, my style and my charm, and my unflinching ability to listen to Taylor Swift."

Then he casually stabbed the knife into Stefan's stomach, earning a groan of pain from his brother. Stefan fell to his knees as he pulled it out slowly while Damon stepped to his side and looked down at the blood and hole in his shirt.

"This is John Varvatos, dude," he said. "Dick. Move."

* * *

I came downstairs just as Jenna turned the T.V. off. Elena was sitting at the head of the table, shining things from the box she got from the safe deposit box.

"What are you doing with that?" Jenna asked.

"Mom told Mrs. Lockwood that she would loan it to the Founder's Council for their heritage display," I explained to Jenna as I grabbed a water bottle from the fridge. I walked over to the table and sat on Elena's right while Jenna rummaged through the box.

"Is that Grandma Beth's wedding ring?" she asked picking up the ring.

"Originally it was Great Great Grandma Mary's wedding ring," Elena said as Jeremy walked over. He reached over and picked up a pocket watch.

"How much do you think this stuff is worth?" he asked. "You know like on eBay?"

"You're not gonna find out," Elena said snatching it back from him.

"That stuff is mom and dad's. You can't just give it away," he protested.

"I'm not giving it away," she said. "It's called a loan, Jeremy."

The doorbell rang and I got up to go answer it, seeing that it wasn't going to get pretty between the two of them. It was Stefan.

"Hi," he greeted.

"Hey there stranger! Come on in," I smiled as I stepped aside to let him in. "Lena! Your lover is here."

She came over quickly, sticking her tongue out at me for teasing her. I giggled and just went up to my room. My phone buzzed on my dresser just as I walked in. I opened the text, seeing it was from Chastity.

**What are you wearing to the founder's party?**

I sucked my teeth as I looked in my closet. I pulled up a random dress, and then shrugged. It was the one Chastity gave me for my birthday last year and since I haven't had a reason to wear it yet, it would be good enough. Caroline would murder me if she heard "good enough" instead of "the best of the best", but oh well.

**The dress you got me for my birthday last year.**

I sent the message and then walked back up to my mirror, staring at my reflection. Adam had asked me to go to the founder's party with him a couple days ago and even though Chastity would kill me when she found out, I agreed to go with him. I wasn't giving him a second chance and I made sure he knew that this was going to be nothing more than two friends going to a party together.

**CUTE! BTW, did you know Caroline's going to the founder's party with Damon?**

Why did that bother me? Why did I want to throw my phone across the room as soon as I read that? I had never thrown a fit in my life, not even when I was a little girl and normally I would be happy for my friends if they found a guy they really liked. But Damon was different. There was something…off about him. Something dangerous.

And yet I found myself attracted to him like a magnet.

**Really? What about Bonnie, Olivia, and you? No double date?**

I decided to keep the concern under wraps. For now, at least.

**No double date, it's a threesome now. It's just Livvie, Bonnie, and me. Maybe that's a good thing ;) We can flirt with whoever without Caroline trying to take the spotlight.**

I shook my head, but smiled. Yeah, but she would still have to fight Olivia.

* * *

The doorbell rang and Jeremy opened it, but tried closing it again when he saw who was there. I could only assume it was Tyler and he was probably here to pick up the stuff for the display. I grabbed it from Elena's room since she was out with Stefan and went down.

"I'm here for my mom, she told me to pick up a box of stuff," I heard Tyler say.

"Right here," I said as I walked to the door. I handed the box over. "Please be careful."

"Yeah, be careful with it, dick," Jeremy spat.

"Hey," I said. "Not now. Please, guys."

"I'm fine, Sammy. He's just being a punk," Tyler said sweetly.

"I got your punk," Jeremy shot back.

"Look, Tyler maybe you should go," I said nicely. "And tell your mom we'll see her tonight."

"You got it sweetness," he winked.

I walked away while Jeremy rolled his eyes in disgust before he closed the door.

I walked into the kitchen and sat down next to Chastity as she looked at two different nail polish colors.

"I don't even have a date and yet I'm struggling to choose one of these," she said. I picked up the bottles and furrowed my eyebrows, but smiled.

"Delicate flower vs. naughty vixen?" I asked. "Tough call, can we mix them?"

"Haha," she said snatching naughty vixen from me. "You should wear delicate flower for your date tonight. It fits you more."

"Is that supposed to be an insult?" I asked with a small laugh. "And I told you it's not a date."

"Right, your buddy company is not a date, got it," she said. "Can you finally tell me who it is now?"

I sighed and looked down at the nail polish bottle I still had, finding all the details on it very interesting suddenly.

"Adam," I said guiltily. She dropped the nail polish bottle, but luckily it didn't break.

"What?" she asked.

"It's two friends going together, I told him that as soon as he asked me."

"That could still give him hope!"

"It's just this party," I said. "That's it. Nothing more after this unless it's in a group. Make you feel better?"

"Slightly," she grumbled. "I'm still going to kill him if he tries anything."

"And that's why you're just as vicious a big brother as Jeremy is," I sighed.

She laughed.

"Who is Elena going with? Stefan?"

"Yep," I confirmed. "She's so excited. She was panicking about what to wear this morning, but I think we got it."

"Great," Chastity said.

"Now, tell me what you wanted to tell me before," I said. She gave me a look. "Don't look surprised, I know you better than you know yourself sometimes."

"I'll wait until later," she said. "Besides, Caroline would kill me if she found out I said anything."

"Since when do you care about what Caroline says or does?"

"Since never, but I just don't want to ruin tonight for you. Or Elena."

"Just tell me because it's bothering you and I don't like that," I insisted. She sighed.

"Apparently Stefan has a very interesting back-story," she said. I waited for her to continue. "Do you know what happened with his ex-girlfriend? Katherine or Elizabeth?"

"I know that Stefan and Damon both dated them. I'm not sure who dated who first, but that's why they have issues."

"Yeah, they both dated them, only they both chose Damon when it came down to it," Chastity told me. "Elizabeth came along first and she and Damon were getting along very well, but Stefan actually dated her first. Then Katherine came and Damon and her had a thing, but Stefan swooped in there too. Both of them said they liked Damon more though and that drove Stefan mad that both of them liked his brother more, so he did horrible things to try and convince one or even both of them to choose him. He manipulated Katherine and Elizabeth, he filled their heads with all these lies until finally it worked and they both turned against Damon."

"That sounds like one person's side of the story, meaning Damon's," I told her.

"I just wanted you to know. I'm not sure if Bonnie told Elena or not," she said sipping at her drink.

"And his past relationships, Stefan's, are none of my business. Maybe not even Elena's. At least not until he chooses to bring them up with her," I said.

"Unless he's a calculating, manipulative liar," Chastity said as she painted her nails with Naughty Vixen. "That is Elena's business just as much as yours."

"Stefan is none of those things," I defended.

"Yeah, how do you know?" she challenged. I bit my lip. I didn't exactly doubt him at this point; I was just trying to find something to prove that Stefan wasn't a bad guy.

* * *

I walked up the stairs of the Lockwood Mansion, the curled tips of my hair bouncing with each step I took. Adam walked over to me with sparkling cider.

"I had to stay away from the champagne," he said. "No minors allowed."

"Shame," I teased.

He and I both looked to the entrance as Caroline and Damon stepped in. She went over to her mom while Damon spotted me, smirked, and strolled over.

"Well hello there, Miss Gilbert," he said kissing my hand. "May I just say that you look absolutely stunning this evening?"

"Thank you," I said politely. Adam stood awkwardly before clearing his throat. "Right, this is my friend Adam. Adam, this is Damon Salvatore. Stefan's older brother."

"Right, heard a lot about you," Adam said curtly as he shook Damon's hand.

"And I'm afraid I've heard nothing of you," Damon said. Adam looked even more uncomfortable at that. "Relax, I don't talk to many of the kids around here, although they obviously talk a lot about me."

"I'm sure Chastity would have said a lot about me," Adam said. "She likes to go on rants all day trash talking me."

"Yeah Chastity has that fiery spirit," Damon said. "Why would she want to trash talk you?"

Adam and I stayed silent, looking at each other awkwardly. I wouldn't say anything if he didn't. Besides, it really wasn't any of Damon's business.

"Uh-oh," Damon said. "Something happen here?"

"There you are!" Caroline said suddenly. I thanked her a thousand times in my mind. "Come on, I want to show you off."

She steered him away and a sigh of relief from Adam.

* * *

Elena and I looked around at the displays together while Stefan and Adam followed closely behind us.

"Hey look at this," I said. "The original guest registry."

"Look at all these familiar names," Elena said. "Sheriff William Forbes, Mayor Benjamin Lockwood."

"Is that Damon Salvatore?" I asked staring at the neatly scripted name. "And Stefan Salvatore?"

Stefan seemed at a loss for words while Elena and I stared at him questioningly.

"The original Salvatore brothers," Damon said.

We all turned to see Damon walk in with Caroline on his arm. Caroline had a small smirk on her face, which I thought was weird. "Our ancestors. Tragic story actually."

"We don't need to bore them with stories of the past," Stefan said.

"It's not boring, Stefan," Elena said. "I'd love to hear more about your family."

"How about a dance instead?" Stefan offered holding his hand out to Elena. Elena looked to me as if trying to get permission.

"Have fun children," I said teasingly.

She smiled and took Stefan's hand as he led her out to the dance floor.

"Well I'm bored," Caroline said. "And Damon won't dance with me. Could I just borrow Adam?"

"Oh uh," I looked to Adam awkwardly.

He'd always had a small crush on Caroline, even when we were dating, but it was up to him not me whether he danced with her now or not.

"I don't really dance," Adam said.

"Oh sure you do. Good-looking guy like yourself? You must have girls crawling all over you, asking you to dance everywhere. You must have picked up something somewhere," Damon said.

"You wouldn't mind, would you Samantha?" Caroline asked.

Okay that…was a little weird. She never really called me by my full name. She always called me Sam, Sammykins, or sweetheart like everyone else.

"It's up to Adam," I said, voicing my thought from before.

"Well sorry, but I'm not going to take no for an answer," Caroline said as she grabbed Adam.

Adam allowed himself to be pulled away by Caroline, sending me a 'see ya later' as she dragged him to the dance floor.

Now it was just me alone with Damon and I couldn't feel more…awkward.

"I want to apologize to you for being such a world-class jerk," Damon said in a sincere manner. "The other night when I tried to kiss you, there's no excuse."

I sighed, nodding slightly. He really seemed like he didn't mean what he was saying, but I may as well let him talk.

"My therapist says I'm acting out, trying to punish Stefan," he reasoned.

"For what?" I asked curiously.

"It's all in the past. I don't even want to bring it up," he said quickly. "Let's just say that the men in the Salvatore family have been cursed with sibling rivalry." He pointed back to the original guest registry. "And it all started with the original Salvatore brothers."

"That's unfortunate," I said walking over to the window, peeking out at the dance floor at Adam and Caroline.

Stefan had gone over and was talking to Adam, and then Adam nodded and walked over to Elena while Stefan danced with Caroline. I furrowed my eyebrows. Stefan wanted to dance with Caroline? Weird.

"The Salvatore name was practically royalty in this town, you know," Damon stated. "Until the war. There was a battle here-"

"The Battle of Willow Creek," I said looking over at him.

"Right," he said.

"I know, we talked about it in class," I told him. "Confederate soldiers fired on a church with civilians inside."

"What the history books left out was the people that were killed," he said walking toward me. "They weren't there by accident. They were believed to be Union sympathizers. So some of the founders on the Confederacy side back then wanted them rounded up and burned alive."

I tilted my head a little. That I never heard. How could that be left out of history books? It's repulsive that someone- anyone- could do that to people.

"Stefan and Damon had someone that they loved very much inside," Damon continued. "And when they went to rescue them, they were shot. Murdered in cold blood."

"Who was in the church that they wanted to save?" I asked.

"A woman, I guess," he said staring me straight in they eyes. "Doesn't it always come down to the love of a woman?"

I got lost in his eyes for a moment. They were so incredibly blue…but they held so much. Secrecy, mischief, danger, and much more. Then I remembered the night he tried to kiss me, how his lips felt against mine. I snapped out of it though.

"Look, I'm sorry that you and Stefan have this thing between you, but I can't get in the middle of it, Damon. Neither can my sister," I told him. He nodded and looked down. "I just…I hope you two can work it out."

"I hope so too," he whispered.

* * *

"What'd we miss?" Damon asked as he and I walked up to Stefan and Caroline.

"Oh we were just chatting," Stefan said as Elena and Adam joined us. "Drink, Damon?"

He held out a champagne glass to Damon while I tucked back of lock of Elena's hair that got lose.

"No thanks, I'll pass," Damon said.

Stefan held the glass up politely while Damon just stared at him with a smirk. I furrowed my eyebrows. They were doing that weird staring thing again and I could tell that Elena was getting uncomfortable. I nudged her and nodded to Stefan.

"Stefan, do you have another dance in you?" she asked.

"Absolutely," he said breaking his eye contact with Damon.

They went to dance while Adam held his hand out to me.

"May I have this dance, milady," he asked with a British accent.

"Of course," I smiled taking his hand.

He led me out to the dance floor by Stefan and Elena before putting his hands on my waist as I draped my arms around his neck. I could feel someone glaring over so I casually looked around until I saw Damon, who looked like he was killing Adam with his eyes. No, I must be mistaken. Why would he look at Adam like that? I shrugged it off and turned my attention back to Adam.

"So how awkward was it being alone with your sister's boyfriend's brother?" he asked casually. I sighed.

"Well," I said. "He apologized for being a jerk, explained why he is the way he is, and it all leads back...to the ex-girlfriends."

"Both of them?" he asked. He knew all about Elizabeth and Katherine since Bonnie and Chastity talked about them to Olivia and Caroline. Stuff gets around with those two.

"Yeah, I guess," I said. "I don't know what to think with that. All I know is that I don't believe Stefan is a bad guy."

"I'm not sure if Elena shares that thought," Adam said looking over at something.

I followed his gaze and saw Elena and Stefan looking like they were fussing over something. It ended when Elena walked away from him in the middle of their dance. I sighed.

"Trouble in paradise," Adam noted.

"Sister duty time," I told him.

He nodded understandingly while I followed after where Elena had just gone. I sent a comforting smile to Stefan, which he returned with a small smile of his own, and I continued after my sister.

* * *

"This is my fault. I planted doubt," Bonnie said.

"I did too. You guys shouldn't listen to us anymore, we're crazy. We're doubt planters," Chastity said.

She, Bonnie, and I were sitting with Elena in the living room of the mansion. Elena had told us what her small argument with Stefan had been about and Bonnie and Chastity immediately accepted blame for putting "bad thoughts" in our head about Stefan.

"It's not all your fault," Elena assured them. "I just- I feel terrible because I said that I wouldn't get in the middle of it, and then that's exactly what I did. Sam's even is getting pulled in with the things Damon's been telling her."

She knew about the things Damon's been telling me, including tonight's conversation, since I told her after she told us about the argument with Stefan.

I tried to defend Stefan with the whole Damon basically admitting he lashes out at Stefan, but at the same time I knew Stefan had to open up even a little bit more with Elena if he expected a relationship with her to work. Elena expected honesty, not secrets and omission.

"Elena, honey, there you are," Mrs. Lockwood said with relief as she walked toward us. "I notice the watch still isn't in the collection."

I furrowed my eyebrows and looked at my sister. She took the watch from Jeremy…how was it not in the collection?

"Oh, um, I'm sorry, Mrs. Lockwood," she said. "I couldn't find it. I guess it's still packed up in my parents' stuff somewhere."

"I see," she nodded. "Well please let me know if you do find it."

"Okay," Elena smiled as Mrs. Lockwood got up and left us. I gave Elena the "Please explain" look and she sighed. "It meant a lot to him."

I smiled and nodded, knowing she meant Jeremy. I remember when Dad told Jeremy about the watch being passed down to the first-born son in the Gilbert family. Elena let Jeremy keep it since it was supposed to be his in the first place.

* * *

I walked in to the "powder room" and went up to the mirror next to Caroline. I smiled at her.

"Hey," I said.

"Hey," she said back as she fixed her earring.

I dug into my clutch purse, looking for my lip-gloss. It was in here somewhere….

"So how are things between Stefan and Elena?" she asked.

"I'm not too sure," I said, not wanting to tell her the details since I wasn't sure if Elena wanted her to know or not. "I think they're good."

"Really?" Caroline asked applying more of her own lip-gloss, not really believing it. "Well my radar must be off, cause I was getting all sorts of other vibes."

I looked at her, not knowing what to say. My gaze trailed down toward her scarf and my thoughts spiked. Why was she so into scarves all of a sudden?

"What is that?" I asked noticing something under her scarf.

"Hmm?" she asked straightening up.

I pulled her scarf a little and she shook me off.

"Don't," she protested. Okay that was more suspicious.

I lifted her scarf when she wasn't paying much attention. She moved again, shaking me off, but not before I saw the deep bite like mark on her neck.

"Oh my god, Caroline what happened?" I asked her.

"Nothing, okay!"

"That is not nothing. Did somebody hurt you?"

"No, okay, nothing," she insisted. "It just…my mom would kill me."

Realization crossed my face. She only started wearing scarves after she began dating Damon.

Could Damon have done this to her? I stepped behind her, trying to see through her white shawl while she applied more lip-gloss. I pulled the shawl off, seeing another bite mark under her left shoulder.

"Did Damon hurt you?" I asked while she tugged it back up.

"No! Of course not!" she said, but I could tell she was lying. I tried seeing again, but she yanked away from me. "Just leave me alone! Okay, Sam?"

She left after that, letting the door slam behind her while I stared after her in disbelief. Damon was hurting her, wasn't he?

I left right away after her, determined to find Damon and to tell him to leave Caroline alone. I looked all over inside the mansion, but it wasn't until I went outside that I finally spotted Damon. I marched straight over to him. He smirked when he saw me coming and I pushed him back.

"There is something seriously wrong with you," I said to him, ignoring his shock. "You stay away from Caroline or I will go straight to her mother, the sheriff. You got it?"

I didn't even give him a chance to answer before I started walking away.

"Stay away from her," I warned him again before leaving him.

* * *

I found Elena, Bonnie, Chastity, and Olivia shortly after and told them about what I found on Caroline and what I told Damon. Bonnie and Olivia went to look for Caroline while Elena went to apologize to Stefan for their argument from before and her doubting him. Now it was just Chastity and me. Adam had gone home when Brian decided to leave and after I told him I was staying a bit longer for Caroline.

"I can't believe it," Chastity said. "Well I kind of can, but still. I didn't think Caroline would get into something like that."

"It's not her fault," I said. "It's Damon's. Caroline deserves to be with someone who will love her and take care of her, not someone who hurts her."

"Do you think Stefan knows?" she asked. I shook my head.

"Stefan would have done something if he did," I said. "He wouldn't let that happen."

I just hoped now that what I said to Damon didn't drive him to hurt Caroline more. I hoped he listened to my warning and stayed away from her now.

I wanted to make sure she was okay, so I went looking for Caroline with Chastity and Bonnie and Olivia told us they still hadn't been able to find her.

We finally found her, quite a distance away from the house and party, beyond the hedges where not many people could see.

"Caroline? There you are," I said with relief. I was glad Damon kept away from her.

"We've been looking everywhere for you," Chastity said.

I walked up faster seeing that she was just standing there, looking down at something. I walked around to look at her face and she just looked confused. She barely had any expression, it was just blank.

"Are you okay?" I asked concerned.

She nodded, looking at me.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said panting a little and tugging at her scarf.

"Caroline, what happened?" I asked immediately, knowing something was wrong with her.

"I'm fine," she said. She was starting to cry now.

"No," I shook my head as she started shaking. "You're shaking. Caroline- what-"

"I'm fine," she insisted. She began mumbling, still panting.

"Caroline, come here," I said pulling her in my arms. She was a lot taller than me so I had to get up really high on my toes to hug her.

She began crying on my shoulder while I hugged her tightly. I wasn't going to make her talk, she was too much in distress for that. I looked over at Chastity and mouthed for her to get the other three. She nodded and ran off toward the house to get Elena, Bonnie, and Olivia while I stayed comforting Caroline. Whatever Damon did to Caroline now…I don't know who did this to her now, if it was Damon again or not- but if it was then he was going to pay.

* * *

**Quick AN before I depart this chapter!**

**I saw a couple questions on the review and here are the answers:**

**1\. Yes! Sam is Elizabeth's doppelgänger like Elena is Katherine's! I actually meant to let you all know earlier, but I picture Lucy Hale as Sam and Elizabeth. Wattpad has this thing where you can choose a cast for your story- which is fun- and I just forgot to mention that here since I didn't have to there.**

**2\. Another yes. Elizabeth is a vampire. She really is Katherine's biological sister and their relationship and back-story will be explored later on in Lost Girls, but I'll be going more in depth in the sequel.**

**That's it for now. If there are any other questions people have, please feel free to ask and I'll answer them as best I can without giving anything away.**


	5. You're Undead to Me

"What's up?" I asked Elena the next morning, seeing the weird look she had on her face.

"Did you know Vicki spent the night here?" she asked. I titled my head.

"What? She spent the night here?"

"Yeah, I just saw her in there," she said, pointing to the bathroom door.

I opened my mouth, then closed it again. I wasn't really sure what to say about that. I thought that Vicki was with Tyler…then again, I heard about her fight last night with Tyler so it would make sense that she would turn to Jeremy. Elena and I got dressed, then went downstairs and saw Jenna sitting at the table.

"Jenna," Elena whispered. "Are you aware of what's going on upstairs?"

"Uh-huh," Jenna nodded casually.

"And you have no objections?" Elena asked.

"He could be craftier about it," she replied. "At least make an effort to sneak her in and out. Oh and uh, just so the both of you know I won't be home for dinner."

"Oh," I said slyly. "So you're actually going to do it. You're going to go out with Logan."

She told both Elena and I about Logan "Scumfell" asking her to dinner last night. We weren't really sure if she would actually do it or not.

"I'm going to show up and torture him, yes," Jenna said.

Elena and I laughed.

"Have you heard from Stefan, Elena?" she asked then.

"Not since he left me that very vague message three days ago," Elena answered before deepening her voice to imitate Stefan. "'Hi, um, Elena, I, um, I have something I have to do. I'll, uh, explain in a few days'."

"You still haven't called him?" I asked her, taking a sip of coffee.

"Nope," Elena said. "Not going to either."

"And you're ok with everything?" Jenna asked her. Elena slammed the milk carton on the counter and I frowned. Poor milk.

"No, I'm not ok with any of it," Elena said. "But I'm not going to cry about it, either."

I sat down at the table next to Jenna, sipping my coffee while I listened to Elena.

"You know, I was going to write in my diary this morning, and then I thought 'what am I going to write?' Honestly, I'm not going to be one of those pathetic girls whose world stops spinning because of some guy."

"Ok then," Jenna said.

I frowned, knowing Elena was hurt that Stefan was keeping things from her. She saw me looking at her and put her spoon down.

"I'll be fine," she assured both Jenna and I before leaving the dining room. Jenna sighed before looking at me.

"Don't look at me," I said. "I'm fine when it comes to guy trouble."

"None whatsoever?" she asked doubtfully, obviously referring to Adam.

"Mm-hmm," I nodded unconvincingly.

"Right," she said, disbelief clear in her tone.

* * *

Chastity, Elena, Bonnie, and I were talking near my locker when we heard Caroline down the hall. We looked down and saw her with a few other girls, passing out flyers for the Sexy Suds Car Was that was supposed to be today.

"I want in your face sexy," Caroline said like it was just another day. "I mean, it's a fundraiser for god's sake."

"Unbelievable," Elena said. "It's like nothing happened."

"I thought you were in charge of the car wash," Chastity said to me. I shrugged.

"Caroline asked me this morning if she could take over," I said. "I figured she needed something to take her mind off of what happened."

"That's being in denial," Bonnie said with a pointed look at me.

I shrugged.

"Or it's coping," I said with a small smile.

"Hey," Stefan said as he walked up to us.

"Hey, uh, you know I gotta go," Bonnie said quickly.

"Yeah, me too," Chastity said. "Gotta be somewhere."

They both rushed off while I looked between Elena and Stefan awkwardly. I sighed and adjusted my bag over my shoulder.

"Yeah, I should go help with the…car wash….planning…something," I said. "See you guys later."

I walked away from them so they could have their private conversation. Well…private up until Elena told me.

* * *

"Give him time, Lena," I told her after she came home from the Grill.

She had told me about the conversation with Stefan and how an old man said he knew Stefan and made some comment about how he hadn't aged a day. It was so…weird. Then again, Stefan could just look like an older relative and the guy could have mistaken Stefan for him.

"I'm trying," Elena mumbled into her pillow. "It's just hard. I feel like he's keeping so many secrets."

"Maybe he is, maybe he isn't," I shrugged. "You can't just expect him to spill everything right away. Maybe he's still trying to get comfortable with telling a girl he likes all his dirty little secrets. I mean, it seems like the last couple times he did that he had his heart broken."

"I guess," she sighed.

"You two okay?" Jeremy asked from the door of Elena's bedroom.

"Is Vicki in there?" she asked without looking at him.

"Don't answer the question with another question," he said, smirk on his face. "What's wrong with you?"

"I'm miserable," Elena answered.

"Well you should go get something to eat," he suggested.

I tilted my head at him. Get something to eat? Elena considered this before she shrugged and got out of her bed, patting Jeremy on the shoulder as she passed him. I sat Indian style on her bed and gave him a 'what the fudge?' look. He smirked and mouthed "Stefan's here" at me. I made an 'o' with my mouth and nodded.

"You're good," I said pointing at him. He held his hands up modestly.

"Stop it, you're making me blush," he said. He then threw himself on Elena's bed next to me and laid his head on my leg. "Why is her bed so much more comfortable than mine?"

"Because your bed doesn't like you doing your dirty deeds on top of him," I teased. He rolled his eyes.

"Relax, it's not like you heard anything," he said.

"Thank god for that."

"Well," he said sitting up. "I should be heading back to my own room now."

"Vicki IS in there, isn't she?"

"Guilty!" I heard Vicki call from Jer's room.

"Hi Vicki!" I called to her with a smile.

Despite the fact that she was a terrible influence on my brother, they made a good couple. Or at least they could be if they tried helping each other rather than supporting each other's drug habits. Vicki was a sweet girl, she was just lost. So was Jeremy right now. They needed each other, but not for drugs.

"So…I'd stay up here if I were you," Jeremy said. "Go to the Grill, steal some of the dinner Stefan's making…your choice."

"I'll stay here," I said laying back on my sister's bed.

He left and went to his room while I played with the blankets on her bed. When I was little, I used to come into Elena's bedroom and sleep in her bed if there was a thunderstorm outside or if I had a bad dream. She always used to pull the blankets over our heads and she'd tell me either stories she remembered from when I was a baby or crossover fairy tales, my favorite being Snow White and the three bears. Looking back now, the stories were horrible and didn't make much sense, but she tried and I was little and loved them regardless because they were Elena's. Then our parents would come in because they'd hear us talking and join in on telling us stories about us as babies and Jeremy would come in too, along with his teddy bear, and we'd all end up falling asleep in Elena's room just like that.

A tear rolled down my face and I quickly swiped it away. I missed those times more than I ever thought I would only because I knew that there was just no way that we could ever recreate them. My parents were gone. But I still had my brother and sister.

* * *

"He finally opened up to me," Elena said happily. "He told me all of this stuff about him. His favorite bands, his favorite movie, TV shows. He even told me about Katherine and Elizabeth," Elena said while she waited at the paying table by me for Caroline at the Sexy Suds Carwash.

"Wow, that's a milestone there," I said sincerely. "He actually opened up about those two?"

"Yeah and from the sound of it, they were both beautiful and intriguing. Katherine sounds a little bitchier than Elizabeth though."

"Alright," Caroline sighed as she sat down in front of Elena and next to me. "No friend discounts. No freebies. No pay ya laters. We are not running a charity here."

"No, we are not," Elena agreed. Stefan walked up to us then.

"Hi," he greeted.

"Hey!" Elena greeted back with a smile, standing up. Caroline re-tied the strings of my bikini top, which had gotten loose after I pulled my hair out to put it up in a messy bun.

"Uh…the event is called SEXY suds, you know," Caroline informed Stefan and Elena, frowning at their fully clothed attire. I smiled at the two and shrugged when Stefan looked at me after she walked away.

"Did we just get scolded?" Stefan asked.

"And judged, yeah," I replied.

"I'm sorry, but I guess you're going to have to take that off," Elena said with a flirty smile gesturing to Stefan's shirt.

"I...think you have to go first," Stefan flirted back.

"Okay…yuck," I said crinkling my nose in a joking manner. "Guys…sitting right here."

They both laughed and looked at me.

"Sorry, Sam," Elena said.

She pulled her shirt up while Stefan took his jacket off. I giggled when Elena struggled with taking her shirt off.

"Ugh, sorry. So not sexy," she said as Stefan helped her. He finally got it off and tossed it on a chair.

"I disagree," he said holding her face. He kissed her.

"Awh," I said, making them both smile as they got deeper into the kiss. I groaned a little. "Still right here."

* * *

"Hey, we're out of towels and those shimmy things," Elena said as she walked up behind Caroline and I.

"I will go get some more," Caroline said, handing me the stack of money she was counting. "Mind the money."

"Gotcha," I said distractedly as I was counting the money in the box. I added the stack Caroline just had and closed it with a sigh, looking at Elena who was still sitting next to me.

"How is she?" she asked. I shrugged.

"You know her," I said, glancing in the direction Caroline went in. "She has ridiculously amazing resilience."

"Yeah, it's…weird," Elena said.

A man walked up then to pay for his car wash.

"That'll be twenty dollars," I said. He handed over the money and Elena looked at him carefully.

"I saw you last night," she said. He looked at her then. "You were talking to a friend of mine, at the grill?"

I looked from her to the man. So this was the old man who recognized Stefan?

"Well, I- I thought it was somebody I knew," he replied.

"Stefan Salvatore," Elena said.

"Nah, it can't be. It's just my mind playing tricks on me," he denied.

"Where do you think you'd seen him before?" I asked then. I shouldn't be butting in, but I was curious.

"When I first moved here, I stayed at the Salvatore boarding house," he answered.

"Oh," Elena said.

"Stefan was just passing through to visit his uncle. I mean, none of us knew he was even here until the attack."

"The attack?" Elena and I both repeated.

"His uncle got killed," the man elaborated. "Mauled by an animal in the woods."

"His uncle, Zach?" Elena asked.

The man shook his head.

"Mm-mmm. Joseph," he said.

"I'm sorry, sir, I don't think I'm familiar with the story," Elena shook her head, confusion on her face. I was having trouble keeping up too….

"Oh, how could you? I mean this happened years ago."

"Grandpa, you gotta go. Mom wants you home," Tiki said coming up next to the table.

"Ah," he said looking away.

"He wasn't bugging you, was he?" Tiki asked us as he started to walk away. "He's a little Alzy-heimer."

I shook my head right away.

"Uh, no he was sweet," I defended her grandfather.

Elena got up and went after Tiki's grandfather while I stayed at the table, seeing that another customer had walked up. I quickly glanced at Elena and Tiki's grandfather and Elena looked utterly confused and weirded out. I wonder what else he said.

* * *

"June 1953?" I repeated.

Elena and I were walking away from the pay table together. I had put Tiki in charge of it since she hadn't stopped complaining about how she didn't feel like washing anymore cars. I figured it was about time I did some cleaning today anyway.

"That's what he said," she mumbled back. "I…I can't believe it. More secrets."

"I'm sure there's a good explanation," I reasoned.

"Maybe. I'll find out," she said.

I followed her gaze to Stefan washing a car.

"Yeah, I'll let you do this," I said to her. "I'm actually going to go look for Caroline. I haven't seen her since she went to get towels."

Elena nodded and I waved at Stefan, who was now walking up to Elena. He smiled and waved back. I then turned around and looked for Caroline.

"Sam!" I heard Chastity call out to me.

She was washing a car with her sister so I walked up to them to ask if they'd seen Caroline.

"Hey guys," I greeted. "Either of you seen Care? She disappeared a while ago to get some more towels and she hasn't come back yet."

"That's why we're having trouble drying these stupid cars," Olivia grumbled. "I have no clue. I can go look in the school if you want."

"Yeah, that'd be great. I'll just keep looking out here," I said. Olivia nodded and jogged into the school to look for Caroline.

"Kay, guess I'll just finish this car myself!" Chastity called after her sarcastically.

"Oh relax, I'll help you finish," I said, picking up the towel Olivia left.

"Sam," Elena said, grabbing my arm. "Come with me."

"Or not," Chastity said.

I sent her an apologetic smile and walked with Elena toward a news van.

"Where are we going?" I asked curiously.

"I got Logan Sc- Fell to take us to the station where we can look at some archive news footage for a couple of fake reports we're doing," she said. I furrowed my eyebrows.

"We're doing this why?" I asked. She didn't reply. Then it came to me. "You're seriously going to look up footage from 1953, Lena?"

"There's things that Stefan isn't telling me. I want to know what," she said quietly as we got the van.

She opened the passenger door and gestured for me to get in first. I sighed and climbed in. Logan smiled at me and held out his hand.

"You must be Samantha," he said. "Logan Fell."

"Nice to meet you. And you can call me Sam," I shook his hand with a smile.

"Of course."

* * *

"We digitized all our archives last year. You can pull all the remote footage right up on screen," Logan informed Elena and me as he led us to the archives. "What is it exactly you're looking for?"

"An incident from 1953," Elena answered as he opened the door for us. "If it even happened- at the old Salvatore boarding house."

We both sat down in a couple of chairs in front of all the TV screens. I shivered a little and rubbed my arms. I was still in my bikini top and short shorts and the air conditioning was cranked to the max in here. How Elena wasn't cold, I have no clue.

"Here, take this," Logan said as he draped his suit jacket over my shoulders.

His cell phone began to ring then. He checked the caller ID.

"Sorry, one second girls," he said. He flipped his phone open. "Yeah? All right, I'll be right there."

He hung up and looked at us both.

"I gotta go," he said. "You believe there's actual news to cover in this town? All right, use keywords to search the database. It's pretty easy to navigate. And Brady down in tech will help you out with anything you need."

"Ok," Elena smiled.

"Alright?" he said. We both nodded. "So...yeah, just leave the jacket by my desk before you leave."

"Will do," I smiled.

"Great," he said. He began walking out of the room before he turned around again. "Oh, hey! Could you two put in a good word for me with Jenna?"

"You got it," Elena said.

"All right, thanks a lot," he said with a smile. "Good luck."

He left then, closing the door behind him and I turned in my chair to Elena.

"He doesn't seem much like a Scumfell," I said, gesturing to the jacket draped over my shoulders.

"No, that's just him sucking up to you so you put a good word in," Elena smiled.

"It worked a little," I shrugged.

She giggled and began typing keywords for our "history class research". I leaned my head on her shoulder. One result popped up from the keywords she used.

"That must be our guy," I said. "Joseph Salvatore."

"Let's go back in time," Elena said, clicking on the footage.

"This is Michael Fell reporting to you from the Salvatore boarding house-" the man on screen said.

"Man, the Fells have the media covered here," I noted.

"-where a brutal animal attack has ended in tragedy. Ok, they're bringing the body. See if you can get closer."

Elena and I watched the screen intently as the shot zoomed in on the police rolling the body of Joseph Salvatore out of the house on a stretcher. Thank god he was covered…

"Is that the nephew?" Michael asked the cameraman.

The camera then zoomed in to the front door where….

"See if you can zoom in more," I said pointing to where the nephew was standing.

"I'm trying," Elena said.

She zoomed in more, the screen still moving. We both got a clear look at his face then…

"No way," Elena whispered.

"Is that Stefan?" I asked. "As in…Stefan? The Stefan we know? The one we talk to?"

"I don't know."

It seemed to be the only thing she could say.

* * *

"How can we deny this anymore?" Elena asked as she paced around my room after we got home later that day. "It's right in front of us."

"I…I don't know," I shook my head. "But…"

"But what?" she asked.

"I don't know," I said. "Someone who never grows old, never gets hurt."

"Someone who changes in ways that can't be explained," she continued. "There are girls being bitten, Caroline is one of them. There are bodies drained of blood….Stefan…he…it's all right in front of us."

"Talk to him," I insisted. "Whatever is going on, we can't just sit here assuming and driving ourselves crazy. We have to know for sure. At least you do."

She nodded and walked quickly out the door.

"I'll be back!" she said. I nodded, still trying to talk myself out of the…I guess the obvious.

There was just now way...he couldn't be. It was impossible.

Stefan couldn't be a vampire.


	6. Lost Girls

_***Flashback, 1864***_

_Stefan Salvatore walked quickly to the entrance of his home, placing his hands behind his back as the carriage of his family's guests pulled up in front._

_First, a dark-skinned woman was helped out of the carriage and she nodded her thanks. Then, Stefan's heart stopped at the next woman._

_She was an elegant beauty. Her olive skin was flawless with rosy cheeks, her dark hair was pulled up and pinned perfectly with curls framing her beautiful face, and her almond shaped brown eyes were mysterious and deep. She looked Stefan up and down, seeming to like what she saw since she smirked a little. The footman helped the third, and final woman out of the carriage and Stefan didn't think that she would ever be able to top the one he was currently staring at. He was wrong._

_The third woman was significantly more petite, but just as beautiful if not more. Her eyes were a striking mix of blue and green and were large and round and held a childlike innocence, her skin was pale and as flawless as the second woman, she had rosy cheeks, and her full lips were as red as roses._

_Stefan finally stepped down the stairs and began walking toward the ladies. He bowed to them slightly, looking at taller woman._

_"You must be the Pierce sisters," he said._

_"Please, call me Katherine," she said, holding her hand out to him. He took it as she curtsied to him, then he looked at her sister._

_"And I insist you call me Elizabeth," she smiled, doing the same as her sister and curtsying. "Mr. Salvatore."_

_"Call me Stefan, please," he smiled._

_In that moment, Stefan's heart was already torn in two. Both the girls held his heart from the moment he looked in their eyes. And thus began a very complicated, dangerous love story._

***Present Day***

I knocked on the door of the Salvatore boarding house the next day. It had been a while since Elena left this morning. She said she was going to talk to Stefan about what he told her last night.

Vampires, I thought. I never thought they actually existed. After Elena confronted Stefan and Stefan confirmed what we thought, Elena practically ran straight to my room to tell me what happened. She was panicking like I've never seen her, especially when Stefan showed up to try to explain things to us- things like he didn't kill people and that Damon was responsible for the people who had been dying- and beg us not to say anything. Elena had basically acted as a human shield for me as best she could and pleaded for him to leave. The look on his face was heartbreaking to me and he left, but not before I assured him that we wouldn't say anything.

Elena was going to get some answers about the whole vampire thing from Stefan today and she didn't take me with her because she didn't want me to get hurt, even though I told her I trusted that Stefan wouldn't hurt me or her for that matter. I wanted to get some answers of my own, though, and I didn't want to have the information passed on to me through Elena.

I knocked again when no one answered, this time the door opened a little like it had the first time I came over with Elena. I shivered. This creepy feeling just came over me and what was I doing? Stepping inside the house. This would be the part of a movie where everyone in the theater stands up and screams for me to not go in. Here I go anyway…

"Hello?" I called.

"Samantha!" a voice said happily.

I whirled around and there he was. Just like the first time.

"Damon," I breathed.

Just because I trusted Stefan didn't mean I trusted Damon. Especially not after Stefan told Elena and me that Damon was responsible for those people that died.

"What uh- I um…I-I thought Stefan and Elena would be-"

"Yeah they're not," he said. He smirked knowingly at me. "You know our little secret, don't you?"

I shook my head.

"No," I denied quickly.

He leaned forward, his face coming dangerously close to mine.

"Your heart beat just picked up," he whispered.

"I should go," I nervously.

I turned around to walk away, but he gripped my wrist and pulled me back.

"No, stay a while," he said. "I've come across an issue with my dear little brother and I'm stuck in this boring house all day until he gets me what I need. I could use the company in the meantime."

He brought me into the living room, where I saw someone on the couch looking less than their best.

"Aw, don't get blood on the couch," he complained.

I gasped.

"Oh my god, Vicki!" I said, ripping my wrist away from Damon and running over to her.

She had a very bloody cloth pressed on her neck where I could only assume Damon bit her. She was still breathing, thank god, but she was fading fast. Damon…tried to kill her. I brushed some of her hair back before turning to Damon.

"You did this to her," I said. "How could you do this to her again?"

"Ah, so you do know everything," he smirked as he came over and sat on the table in front of Vicki. "Please, not with the blood again."

He peeled away the cloth and looked at her neck.

"I got you good, didn't I?" he said.

"How can you act like this is a game?" I asked, staring at him in horror.

"Simple," he said. "Because it is."

He looked back to Vicki from me. I shook my head at him.

"This isn't a game," I said. "She's a human being, she-"

"She's a walking blood bag," Damon argued heartlessly. "And with the way she is right now, she's not going to be any fun today and neither are you."

He walked around the couch, staring down at Vicki as he did.

"I am so gonna regret this later," he said as he bit down into his wrist.

"What are you doing?" I asked panicked.

"Shh," he said to me, pushing his bloody wrist in Vicki's face. "I'm healing her."

"Healing-"

I stopped when I saw Vicki start drinking greedily from Damon's wrist.

"Don't drip," he told her. "Good girl. That's it."

And just like that, the wound on her neck was gone. I stared at it before looking to Damon.

"How did that just happen?" I asked.

"Vampire blood has mystical healing powers," he said. "It healed her neck right up."

I took deep breaths before sitting down slowly on the couch by Vicki's feet. She was laying still, probably sleeping now.

"Well come on," Damon said, leaning back on the couch opposite me casually. "You must be buzzing with questions as I'm sure your sister is."

"Um…" I started. "You said you ran into some problems with Stefan…"

"He took my ring," he said.

"Your ring?"

"My daylight ring," he said pointing to the finger I'm assuming he wears his ring on. "It prevents the sunlight from harming me."

Daylight ring. That must be what the ring Stefan always wears was.

"So you can walk in the sunlight?"

"Yes. Without it, I'm just your boring average vampire."

That was helpful to know for later. All I had to do was wait for Vicki to wake up and we could get out of here, knowing he couldn't come after us because of the sun.

"What about..mirrors?"

"I love them," he said. "I get to see my beautiful face."

"Figures," I said. "What about…garlic? Crucifixes? Holy water?"

"Great flavor, decorative, and drinkable," he said.

"Do you sleep in coffins?"

He laughed at that and I ended up smiling myself, though I wiped it away as soon as he stopped laughing.

"I prefer beds," he said. "You'd like mine."

"So does drinking vampire blood turn you into a vampire?" I asked, ignoring that last comment.

"No, you have to die with vampire blood in your system and feed on human blood. THEN you turn into a vampire," he answered. He saw me glance at Vicki then. "She's safe if that's what you're getting at. She'll still be human when she wakes up."

"You're not going to kill her?" I asked with disbelief.

"Well…I might," he admitted. "Depends on how bored I get. Although, these questions are doing a great job of keeping me entertained."

I stared at him for a moment before quickly thinking of more questions to ask him.

"Are there more besides you and Stefan here?" I asked.

"Not anymore," he said. "This town used to be filled with vampires and the council knew all about them."

"The council?"

"Well I don't know about now, but back then they sure did," he went on before he saw my confusion. "Oh right. They're a super secret organization."

"When you say back then…"

"Call me an old man, but back in my time," he said. "1864."

"So that's why Stefan's so good in history," I said out loud by accident.

He chuckled and nodded.

"Living it does give him a boost," he said. "You ever need help in history class, you can always go to him. Of course, you could always come to me too."

It didn't sound like he was planning on killing me, and that relieved me. Although I still didn't feel comfortable in his presence. Not with what he's done to Caroline and Vicki. The thought of Caroline angered me then.

"How could you do that to Caroline?" I demanded. "Why would you do that to her? Torture her like that? Hurt her?"

"I compelled her to forget everything," he said carelessly. "She's fine now. Save for a couple bruises, maybe a scratch or two."

"Compelled?"

"A mind control type thing," he explained. "Every vampire can do it. Of course my compulsion compared to Stefan's is significantly stronger thanks to his diet."

"He doesn't drink human blood," I remembered. "But you do."

"Guilty," he said holding up his glass of…I didn't want to think of who.

I didn't want to talk or even think about him drinking human blood, so I switched the topic.

"You said 1864 was back in your time," I began. "And you said the Founder's council knew about vampires then."

"Yepp."

"So the names on the registry at the Founder's party…those were really yours and Stefan's?"

"Yes and yes," Damon sighed. "Stefan and I were born here. Though, we didn't have this house at the time. I should take you where we used to live."

"You and Stefan were born here?"

"Indeed. The Salvatore brothers. Best friends."

_***Flashback***_

_"Wait, where did you learn this game?" Stefan asked Damon as they ran outside, in front of their home._

_"Camp outside Atlanta," Damon answered. "One of the officers picked it up at Harvard. Catch."_

_He threw the football to Stefan and charged at him after he caught it._

_"What are the rules?" Stefan asked laughing. He asked again after dodging Damon's attempted tackle._

_"Who needs rules?" Elizabeth spoke up as she stepped outside, her sister and handmaid at either side of her. Katherine smirked at the brothers._

_"Mind if we join you?" she asked stepping down the steps._

_Stefan and Damon walked in front of the sisters._

_"Uh, well, you could uh- you could get hurt," Stefan said, looking at both sisters in awe. "My brother likes to play rough."_

_Elizabeth giggled as she stepped down, joining Katherine at her side. She smiled at Damon before switching her eyes over to Stefan._

_"Nothing wrong with getting a little rough now and then," she said. "And something tells me you like to play rougher."_

_She smiled mischievously as she snatched the ball right from Stefan's hands and ran off. Katherine laughed._

_"Very smooth sister!" Katherine said running after Elizabeth._

_Elizabeth tossed the ball gracefully to Katherine and Katherine caught it with ease._

_"Why thank you sister!" Elizabeth said._

_Damon and Stefan watched the girls run off with smiles on their faces. Damon looked at Stefan._

_"Why are you just standing there?" he asked. "Those are girls who clearly want to be chased."_

_They stood there for just a while longer before Damon looked back to Stefan._

_"If you don't do it, I will," he said as he took off running after the girls. Stefan laughed and joined his brother in the chase, but he didn't know which sister he was going for._

***Present***

"You knew Elizabeth and Katherine in 1864?" I asked. "The way you talked about them made it seem like it-"

"Wasn't that long ago?" Damon asked. "When you're a vampire, the years sort of blend together. It doesn't seem like long ago to me."

"But it was one hundred and forty-five years ago," I said. "And you're still torturing Stefan over them?"

Suddenly Vicki gasped and started coughing. I jumped to her side and helped her sit up.

"Vick," I said softly. "You okay? How do you feel?"

"I'm fine," she said almost sounding surprised. "I just feel wasted."

"You might be still," Damon said. "Why don't you head upstairs and freshen up? Take a shower or something."

"Yeah," Vicki nodded slowly. "Yeah, I'll…take a shower."

She stood up, obviously still feeling dazed, and made her way up the stairs slowly. I sat back down, wanting to go up to help Vicki but at the same time, I wanted to know more. About Damon, about Stefan, and about Katherine and Elizabeth. Damon cleared his throat, earning my attention again.

"Like I said, it doesn't seem like that long ago. Besides, they weren't just your average girls, especially not Elizabeth. She was very, very special."

_***Flashback***_

_Damon chased Elizabeth through the maze on his father's land, laughing as she giggled and looked over her shoulder every now and then to make sure he was still chasing her. She reached the statue at the end and laughed victoriously._

_"I won!" Elizabeth exclaimed as Damon ran the rest of the way up to her. "What's my prize?"_

_"Whatever you would like it to be," Damon smiled._

_"Brother," Stefan's voice sounded._

_He and Katherine walked up to Damon and Elizabeth, Katherine with a smirk on her face as usual._

_"They extended your leave?" Stefan asked Damon._

_"I was simply having too much fun to return to battle," Damon replied with a smile._

_"Your commitment to the Confederacy is inspiring," Stefan said walking up and greeting his brother with a hug._

_"Well this works out perfectly for us," Katherine spoke up._

_"How is that Miss Katherine?" Damon asked her._

_"Now we'll have both of you here to keep us entertained," Elizabeth smiled, walking to stand beside her sister. "First and foremost, we'll need someone to escort us to the Founder's Ball."_

_"I would be honored," Stefan said._

_"With pleasure," Damon said at the same time._

_"The smart and kind Salvatore brothers both coming to our rescue," Katherine smiled._

_"How will we ever choose?" Elizabeth asked, sharing a secret smile with her sister._

_They linked arms and walked back to the house together, sending teasing smiles over their shoulders to the brothers who were still watching them both in awe._

_***End Flashback***_

"Katherine chose Stefan," Damon said. "But not before Elizabeth chose me."

"Is that the truth?" I asked reluctantly.

"That is the truth," Damon said looking me straight in the eye. "Sam, I know that things I've said and done before may make you not trust me as much, but right now…you can ask me whatever you want and I will give you nothing but the absolute truth."

He stared at me for a while and I stared right back, deciding if I should trust him or not. My mind was screaming at me not to, but my heart was telling me that I could. I always was a sucker for the heart.

"You escorted Elizabeth to the first founder's party," I said questioningly. He nodded.

"At the original Lockwood mansion," he said.

"And Stefan took Katherine because he didn't have a choice or because Katherine didn't?" I asked.

"Both," Damon said. "Elizabeth…was everything you could ever want a girl to be. She lured you in with one smile, one laugh. Katherine was very jealous of her little sister at times, but she loved her nonetheless. When Elizabeth chose me, it made Katherine angry but she accepted and agreed to go to the ball with Stefan. Of course, at the time, Stefan had no idea that Elizabeth had already chosen and when he did find out, he wasn't very happy but, well, you know Stef."

"Just a little," I said. "But I can imagine he didn't show how unhappy he was."

"Of course he didn't," Damon smiled. "He was the perfect gentleman to Katherine. He had a genuine good time with her, but that didn't stop him from yearning for Elizabeth."

"So...what happened?" I asked.

"Elizabeth's selfishness," Damon said a bit sadly. "Although she was a very different girl than Katherine, she did have her moments where she was almost the same as her. Elizabeth…wasn't satisfied with just one of us. And Stefan sure as hell didn't stop her."

I absorbed that information. Elizabeth betrayed Damon with his own brother. Not only that, but she betrayed her sister. How could she do that to them?

"What about Katherine?" I asked.

"Katherine was upset, of course," Damon said. "But she didn't very much mind being the distraction when she needed to be. I, unlike Stefan, didn't allow her near me much."

"So because of that, you were upset with Stefan?" I asked.

"Very," he said.

"You don't just get mad, though, do you? You get even," I deduced.

He just looked at me, his face answer enough that I was right.

"Oh man, that shower was so great," Vicki said as she came down the stairs in a tank top and her underwear, a towel in hand.

"Hey, you feeling better?" I asked her as I stood up and walked over to her quickly.

"Yeah, much better," Vicki answered. She ruffled my hair. "Thanks for caring, kid. You're the best."

She stopped suddenly when she walked past the mirror, looking at her neck in shock, noticing her wound was gone. She looked from the mirror to Damon- who was now standing up against a wall, then back to the mirror, and then Damon again.

"What did you give me?" she asked him with wide eyes.

"Some blood," Damon said simply. "You loved it."

"I did?" Vicki asked, looking to me for confirmation.

I opened my mouth, but closed again. It looked like she did, but it felt too crass to tell her. Besides, I didn't know if she really did or not.

"Wait…I'm confused. How did we get here?" she asked looking around and walking to stand in front of Damon while I stayed where I was. She must have been really out of it when she first woke up.

"We met in the woods," Damon told her. "You were drunk, I attacked you, then I killed all of your friends, and brought you here. Gave you some blood. You loved it. And now, we're gonna party till the sun goes down.

Vicki seemed to be staring at him in a trance the whole time he spoke and I watched them, confused.

"Okay," Vicki said agreeably. That's when I knew Damon did something. That mind control thing…compulsion! "Um, but first, can I have another hit? That blood was so good."

She smiled and closed her eyes while Damon smirked at her.

"Only if I can," he said.

"Wait- what-"

Before I could finish my question, Vicki held out her wrist to Damon and Damon bit into his own wrist before latching on to Vicki's. She did the same to his and they stood drinking each other's blood. I had to blink a few times to make sure I was really seeing this.

"What the hell?" I managed to get out. "Damon-"

"Relax, Sammy," he said, the Damon I had been talking to earlier disappearing. "I didn't forget about you. Want a hit?"

He held out his other wrist to me with blood dripping down the side of his mouth, Vicki still drinking from his wrist. I shook my head. He groaned.

"Come on, have some fun please?" he begged.

When I didn't move, he just shrugged and went back to drinking from Vicki. What the hell was I supposed to do now?

* * *

**-Third POV-**

"Elizabeth wasn't just with Damon that night," Stefan told Elena, continuing his story. "She came to me later on after I had dropped Katherine off to her room."

"So you did steal Elizabeth from Damon?" Elena asked Stefan. Stefan shook his head.

"Turns out…Elizabeth was never ours to steal," Stefan told her.

_***Flashback***_

_Stefan kissed Elizabeth as he hovered over her in bed. She quickly changed their positions, straddling his lap as he sat up and began kissing down her neck. He suddenly stopped and held her face gently in his hand, looking up at her._

_"I will love you forever," he told her._

_"Forever is a very long time, you know," she sighed as he began kissing down her neck again._

_"Not long enough," he whispered against her jaw._

_He continued kissing her and she smiled as she did so when she suddenly felt her fangs slowly start to protrude from her gums and the veins around her eyes popped out. Stefan heard the crinkling and looked up at her face. His shock didn't allow him to make a sound, not even when she sunk her fangs into his neck._

_The next morning, Elizabeth braced herself against the mirror as Emily tied her corset up. She flinched every now and then when Emily yanked the laces. She may have been a vampire, but the corsets were still uncomfortable. Stefan's eyes fluttered open, his memories of the night before slowly returning to him. He sat up in bed abruptly when he remembered what happened. Elizabeth's face…she bit him…Elizabeth smiled at him._

_"Good morning," she said calmly. "Leave the room, please."_

_Emily, knowing what her lady was, did as she asked and left the room while Stefan felt his neck._

_"You're upset," Elizabeth stated, turning around and walking toward Stefan._

_"Your face," he said with wide eyes. "It was like a demon."_

_He was confused on how someone who appeared to be so angelic could look so demonic._

_"But you're not afraid," she told him._

_"How can I not be?" he asked. She got closer. "Get away."_

_"It doesn't change the way you feel about me," she said looking him straight in the eye, compelling him. "You will not tell anyone."_

_"I-"_

_She pressed her finger to his lips._

_"We will go on exactly as we have," she continued to compel him._

_"Yes," Stefan said robotically. "We will go on."_

_Elizabeth smiled and giggled._

_"You have no idea of the future I have planned for us, Stefan," she said with a big smile. "You, me, Damon, and Katherine. No rules."_

_***End Flashback***_

"Elizabeth could control my mind," Stefan said. "And Damon's. She compelled each of us to keep the secret from the other. She wanted all of us to be together. Forever."

Elena was shocked. Elizabeth…sounded childish and evil.

"Didn't work out that way," Stefan shrugged. "But Damon and I-" he crouched down and picked up a bag he had hidden. "-looks like we're stuck with each other."

He took the ring out of the bag and stared down at it.

"Like it or not," he finished.

"Is that Damon's ring?" Elena asked him.

"I took it from him, but I have to give it back," he told her.

"No," Elena said walking toward Stefan quickly. "Don't, Stefan. Keep it hidden."

"Elena, if I don't give it to him, he'll retaliate in the only way that he knows he can hurt me."

"And how is that?" Elena asked annoyed.

"By hurting you and Sam," Stefan replied.

Elena's face softened a bit at the mention of her sister, but there was fear along with it.

* * *

**-Sam Again-**

I sat on the couch and watched as Vicki danced around the living room while Damon leaned on the couch next to me, drinking straight from the bourbon bottle.

"I am so over Tyler!" Vicki said. "So over him."

She ran over to the window and danced in the sunlight.

"I knew from the beginning that I was only a piece of ass to him, but I thought maybe if he got to know me better, he might see something more," she ranted. "But no."

"He is who he is, Vick," I said. "Everyone knows how he is with that kind of stuff."

"You're right," Vicki said as she continued bouncing all over the place. "Now, Jeremy, on the other hand, that's all he's ever seen in me is something more, and I like that."

She dropped to the floor and rolled around, giggling as she talked about Jeremy.

"I don't mean to make you feel awkward, Sam," she said. "It is your big brother after all."

"No, it's fine," I said. "You like him. I'm glad you do because he really really cares about you."

"I know he does," she smiled. She looked at Damon then. "So Elena used to date my brother and they were always together so Jeremy would always be hanging around and crushing on me and- hey, why don't you have a girlfriend? Your like totally cool and so hot."

"I know," Damon said arrogantly, sending a wink in my direction. I rolled my eyes, but smiled anyway.

"Don't you wanna be in love?" Vicki asked.

"I've been in love," Damon slurred a little. "It's painful and pointless and overrated."

Of course he would think that, the only woman he loved played him and his brother.

"Except when it isn't," Vicki said, grabbing his hand and dancing around with him.

"No more talking, let's dance!" Damon said.

He and Vicki danced all around the house. My phone started buzzing then and I checked to make sure Damon wasn't watching. He wasn't even in the room so I took out my phone, seeing it was Elena, and answered right away.

"Hey," she said. "Where are you?"

"I'm at the boarding house," I said quietly. "Damon wouldn't let me leave and we ended up talking…now he's just dancing around the house with Vicki."

"Wait, Vicki's there?" she asked.

"He attacked her again last night," I said. "He gave her some of his blood and I think he did something to her because she's being really calm about the situation and she's dancing around the house with him and I don't wanna leave because-"

"Okay, calm down Sam," Elena said. "Stefan and I will be there soon."

"Okay," I nodded. I quickly hung up and put my phone back in my pocket before Damon came back down. Actually…they've been upstairs for a while.

I ran up the stairs to check on Vicki and found them in Stefan's room. Vicki was jumping on his bed while Damon was over by his desk, looking down at something with pain and sadness etched on his face. He turned his head to me and I saw his eyes light up a little. What was he looking at?

"My mom spends most of her time in Virginia Beach with Pete," Vicki said to Damon while they slow danced.

I stood on the opposite of the room, watching them carefully. Damon may have said that he wasn't going to hurt Vicki, but I could beg to differ. He never did tell me what he was staring at upstairs, he stashed whatever it was away so I didn't get to see for myself.

"I don't remember my dad, but from what I gather, he's not worth remembering," Vicki continues to Damon.

"Your life is so pathetic," he said with false sympathy.

"It's not pathetic," I defended Vicki. Matt too because he came from the same background.

"Yeah it is," Vicki said. "I mean, I'm the screwed up one. Matt's got it so easy. He's the golden boy. I mean, he's gonna get a football scholarship and marry Elena and have a lawn mower and have some babies and when I think of my future…I just come up blank."

"You are so damaged," Damon said with the same tone from before.

"Yep," she nodded.

"I mean you don't have one hint of self-esteem," Damon continued.

"Nope, none," Vicki said with a few tears.

I started walking over to her to comfort her.

"I think I know what can help you," Damon said.

"What's that?" she asked.

"Death," he said simply.

Before I could blink, he had snapped her neck, killing her. I gasped and stopped where I was, staring at Vicki in shock.

"She'll be out for a while," Damon said.

"How could- you just- you just killed her!" I yelled.

"Relax, she's not dead. Well, not technically," he said. "She'll come back."

"As a vampire!" I argued. "How could you do that to her?"

"Sam," he said stepping closer to me. I didn't back down from him, I stood my ground. "She was living a pathetic life. She clearly wasn't happy. As a vampire, her life will be better."

"How is it going to get better for her?" I asked. "She…what about Matt? And Jeremy?"

"She can still be around them," Damon shrugged. "She'll just want to eat them."

I stared at him, still unable to believe that he could just so effortlessly snap Vicki's neck like that.

* * *

Damon walked around the room and stuck his hand in the ray of sunlight peeking in between the curtains.

He hissed in annoyance and pulled his hand back when it burnt his hand.

"You deserved that," I sang.

He gave me a sarcastic smirk before Vicki waking up earned our attention.

"Vicki," I said thankfully.

"What happened?" she groaned, rubbing her neck. "We were dancing and then-"

"Then I killed you," Damon said. How could he be so easy going about this?

"What?" Vicki asked, confused.

"You're dead."

"I'm dead?" Vicki said in a disbelieving tone.

"Yeah, well let's not make a big deal out of it," Damon sighed. "You drank my blood, I killed you, and now you have to feed in order to complete the process."

"You're wasted," Vicki groaned as she stood up.

I handed her her pants and she took them with a small smile, then walked past Damon.

"You don't wanna be out there all alone," Damon warned her. She ignored him and he sped in front of her. "You're about to get really freaky."

She seemed confused about how he got there so fast, but she blinked it away.

"Ok, I had a great time, I just really want to go home."

"You're still craving blood and until you get it, you're feel very out of it. You have to be careful."

Damon's words of warning to her really scared me. Would she be that out of control that even Damon had to tell her to be careful?

"Come on, move," Vicki said trying to shove Damon out of her way.

He eventually moved aside for her.

"See, you're already starting to fall apart," he chuckled.

"Vicki, wait a second," I finally spoke up, following after her. "Just…I know you probably don't feel very good right now, but why don't you just stay here until you're better."

Where you can't hurt anyone…

"I'm going home now, Sam," she said.

"Ok, fine," Damon said.

"No," I shook my head. "Vick, just-"

"Matt's probably freaking out anyway," Vicki told me. "You know how he is."

"She's right," Damon said. "She should go. In fact, if I were you Vicki, I would stop by your boyfriend Jeremy's house."

"What?!" I demanded.

"Yeah, whatever," Vicki snapped. "Bye."

"Vicki-"

"Tell Elena I said hi," Damon called after Vicki while he took hold of my arm. "And if you see Stefan, tell him to call me."

"Damon, why did you tell her to go to my house? She could hurt Jeremy!"

"Whoops," Damon said. "Well, it's done now."

"Elena and Stefan were already on their way over here," I shook my head as I took my phone out. "Now I'm telling them to go home, Vicki can't be around Jeremy."

"Don't do that," Damon said. "If Stefan has my ring, I want him here. The sooner I get my ring, the better."

"Screw that," I snapped. "They need to go home."

* * *

**Third POV**

"That mind control thing Katherine used on you," Elena said to Stefan in the car. "Did you ever use that on Sam or me?"

"No," Stefan replied. "That necklace I gave you, it contains an herb called vervain. It protects you from being compelled. I wanted to protect you from Damon's influence, but I also wanted to protect you from me."

Elena let that part sink in.

"Elena, you should never take that necklace off because no matter what happens after today, no matter how you feel about me, you'll know that you were free to make your own choice."

"What about Sam?" Elena asked then. "Did you give her vervain too?"

"That's the thing," Stefan sighed. "I had something for her, but she already had a necklace. From Chastity. Damon tried to compel her in the parking lot on the night of the homecoming game and it didn't work."

"So what does that mean?"

"It means Chastity must know about vampires because that necklace has vervain in it," Stefan replied, keeping the part about him suspecting she was a witch out of it.

"So Sam is safe from Damon?"

"Mentally," Stefan said.

Elena's phone beeped then, making her flinch slightly. She looked at Stefan and asked him to check who it was.

"It's a text from Sam," Stefan told her.

"Is she okay?" Elena immediately asked, panicking slightly. If Damon did anything to her little sister…

"She wants us to get to your house," Stefan said, reading the text. His tone dropped. "Damon turned Vicki."

"Damon turned Vicki into a vampire?" Elena asked.

"And he sent her straight to your house. If she hasn't completed the transition, Elena, she could hurt Jeremy. We need to get to your house."

"What about Sam?"

"Damon won't hurt her," Stefan said confidently. "He'll wait until the sun is down and he'll bring her home."

Elena gave Stefan a wary look, telling him she wasn't sure about leaving her sister alone with Damon, but Jeremy was in danger too. And knowing Sam, if Elena didn't get home to Jeremy, she would give her an earful.

So as much as she hated to do it, Elena turned the car around and sped home.

* * *

**Sam's POV**

"Look at that," Damon said, peeking past the curtains. "Nice and dark outside."

"So can I go home now?" I asked, crossing my arms.

Waiting until the sun went down wasn't all that bad, but I still couldn't forget how easily Damon had snapped Vicki's neck.

"Yes, you may," Damon said with a smile. "In fact, I'll escort you."

"You don't have to-"

"Oh yes I do," he said in a tone that told me I really had no choice.

I sighed and let me arms fall to my sides. "Fine. Elena won't be happy."

"All the more reason to go."

"Why did you ring the doorbell?" I asked him.

"It's the polite thing to do."

"It's my house," I said.

I unlocked the door and entered the house just in time to see Elena and Jeremy rushing over.

"Sam," Elena sighed with relief, throwing her arms around me. "I'm so glad you're okay."

"I see you survived," I teased lightly, hugging her back. "Where's Vicki?"

"She took off," she said. "Matt and Stefan are out looking for her."

"Where have you been?" Jeremy asked in his big brother tone.

"With me," Damon answered. I shut my eyes, hoping he wouldn't cause any trouble here.

Elena immediately tried to shut the door again, but Damon was too strong for her and he managed to push it back open.

"Jeremy, go upstairs," Elena said, glaring at Damon.

Jeremy looked at me hesitantly and I nodded. He must have figured Elena would chew Damon out for keeping me out all day since he went upstairs without a word.

"You're afraid of me," Damon said in an almost amused tone. "Stefan really did spill the beans.

"Stay away from me and my sister," Elena told him firmly.

"Hey, hey, hey there's no need to be rude. I'm just looking for Stefan and escorting your gorgeous little sister home. After all it's dark out, lots of dangerous creatures like to roam around at night," he smirked. "May I come in? Oh, wait. Of course I can. I've been invited."

He stepped in, closing the door behind him. Elena stepped back away from him, pushing me behind her even though Damon was seriously the last thing I was afraid of right now. Damon stepped in front of the living room, looking around.

"We can cut to the chase if you want," he told Elena. "I'm not going to kill you right now. That wouldn't serve my greater agenda."

Elena didn't say anything and neither did I. I couldn't read Damon all the way, I had no idea if he was really planning on killing Elena or not. I didn't even know if he was serious about not wanting to kill me.

"So," Damon continued. "Where's Stefan?"

"He's out looking for Vicki."

"So I heard, but where."

"I don't know," Elena told him. "She ran off to who knows where."

"Don't look at me with those judgey little eyes," Damon said, stepping forward and Elena hastily stepped back. "Girl's gonna thank me for what I did to her."

"Did you thank Elizabeth? Or Katherine?" Elena asked.

Sucker punch, sis, I thought. I guess the Salvatores told us the same story today.

"Mmm," Damon said stepping away from Elena. "Got the whole life story huh?"

"I got enough."

"Oh, I doubt that," Damon said. He looked at me over his shoulder. "I didn't tell you everything either. There's still much more to hear about the brothers Salvatore."

Elena looked at me confused, but I kept my eyes on Damon. What more to the story was there that he didn't tell me?

He walked to the door. "Tell my brother I'm looking for him."

He opened the door and went out, but not before poking his head back in.

"Oh, tip for later," he said. "Be careful who you invite in the house."

Elena ran to the door as soon as he closed it and immediately put all the locks on, like it would keep him out if he really wanted to get inside.

"Did he hurt you?" she immediately asked me.

"No," I shook my head. "I'm fine. We just…we talked for most of the day."

"So you're okay?"

"Yes, Elena. I'm fine."

She looked hesitant, but then her gaze dropped to my necklace.

"Chastity gave you that, right?" she asked.

"Yeah…"

"It's got vervain in it."

"Wait what?" I asked. "What is vervain?"

"Damon skipped over that part, figures," she muttered. "Vervain it's…Stefan said it's an herb that protects you from compulsion."

"Yeah, compulsion he tells me about but not vervain," I said. "How would my necklace have vervain though?" That would mean Chastity…knows."

The thought of my best friend knowing about vampires worried me for her, but it also kind of hurt me. She kept it from me. She gave me a necklace of vervain, which meant she knew there were vampires around but she didn't tell me…then again, I guess I could understand why. Who would believe something like that if they didn't see it for themselves? I guess it was better of me to find out through Damon and Stefan. Still, knowing about vampires could be dangerous for Chastity and I didn't want her to get hurt.

"She must know," Elena said. "That's the only explanation."

"Does your necklace have vervain?" I asked then. "Stefan gave that to you right?"

"He wanted to protect me from Damon," she said. "He had one for you, but he found out Chastity already gave you one."

I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair.

"Are you okay?" I asked then, realizing I hadn't even asked yet. "You talked to Stefan today?"

"Yeah…he told me about his life before, meeting Katherine and Elizabeth, and…his relationship with them."

"Oh."

"You said you talked with Damon? About what?" she asked.

"How they turned, when they turned, Katherine and Elizabeth…"

"The same stuff Stefan told me?" she asked.

"I don't know," I shrugged. "They came from very different sources, so who knows."

Elena sighed and looked down. I noticed her breathing getting quicker and quicker, like she was hyperventilating. I rushed to her side and put my arms around her.

"I don't know if I can do this," she said. "With Stefan. It just- it's too much. I can't…I don't think I can…"

"Shh," I said. "You've had a long day. Why don't you just…sleep on it. Get some rest, that's what you need."

"What if Stefan comes back?" she asked. I couldn't help but hear the slight fear in her tone.

"I'll talk to him," I told her.

"No, Sam, I don't want you even having anything to do with this," she said. "You shouldn't know about this. This is too much for anyone to know-"

"I can handle it," I assured her. "I'm a big girl now, Elena. I can handle it."

She sighed, but nodded. "Thanks."

"Of course," I smiled. "Now get some rest."

She blew some air out of her cheeks and went upstairs, leaving me downstairs alone.

* * *

Not too long after Elena went up, I saw Stefan walking up to the house with blood on his shirt. I immediately went outside.

"Are you okay?" I asked rushing over to him. "You're bleeding."

"No, it's ok. It's ok, I'm okay," he assured me.

I saw through the hole in his shirt that he was healed of whatever it was that made him bleed and I felt relieved. He was okay. I just hoped now that Damon was too.

"What about you? Are you okay? Damon didn't do anything to you, did he?" he asked looking me over.

"I'm fine," I said. "We talked. It actually wasn't that bad."

He furrowed his eyebrows but seemed to accept it when his eyes locked on my necklace.

"What about Vicki?" I asked. His eyes met mine again. "Did you find her?"

"Yeah," he sighed, leaning against the pillar. "I found her…but I couldn't stop her."

"So she fed," I said, looking at down at the porch.

"She fed," he confirmed. "And then I lost her."

"Oh my god," I said. "So she…she's a vampire now?"

"Yeah, but I'll find her," he assured me. "I'll find her and I'll show her that she can live like I do. I will make sure that she does not hurt anybody, Sam. I promise you."

I closed my eyes and looked back down.

"What about Jeremy and Matt?" I asked. "What do we tell them?"

"We'll come up with a story," he said. "She woke up, she's finally getting help."

"Like rehab?" I asked. "She went to rehab?"

"It'll be something like that anyway," he said.

I swallowed, not liking the idea of lying to Matt or my brother, but it was best. If Stefan could help Vicki then she could get control and not hurt anyone. Maybe this could really help her work through her drug problems too. I had to look on the bright side here. This could all work out…

"Okay," I said finally, nodding. "Yeah. That's….yeah. That's good."

Stefan stared at me for a moment before he spoke again.

"I uh…I didn't get a chance to talk to you today," he said. "I know last night-"

"Yeah," I said. "Um…I went to your house today because…for some reason I figured you guys would be there after breakfast, but Damon was there and he kind of kept me hostage."

"And you talked today?"

"Yeah," I said. "We talked."

"About?"

"Um," I sat down on one of the porch chairs. He followed my lead and sat on the one closest to me. "He told me about how you guys used to be best friends. You had a really close relationship until…"

"Elizabeth and Katherine came," he said.

"The way he talked it was like…the world revolved around Elizabeth," I said. "He said Katherine was jealous of Elizabeth, especially when the Founder's Ball came around."

Stefan nodded and leaned back in his chair.

"It wasn't…one of my proudest times," he admitted. "Elizabeth…she just drew you in."

"Yeah, he said something like that too," I said. "She must have been pretty amazing."

I looked over at him to see him staring at me intently. He blinked and looked away when I looked at him, though.

"She was," he said.

"I'm sorry," I said suddenly.

"What?"

"I'm sorry," I repeated. "Katherine and Elizabeth wedged themselves between you. Well, Elizabeth mostly, but still. And even though neither of you did much to help the situation, it's still terrible to think that it ruined your relationship with your brother."

Stefan stared at me before giving me a small smile. "Thanks." Then he seemed to remember something. "Hey, is Elena still here?"

"She's getting some rest," I told him. "She said some things…I told her to sleep on it. She had a long day."

"She doesn't want to see me anymore, does she?"

The way he said it didn't seem like he was very sad about it. Almost like it was expected.

"You should talk to her about it," I said. "Tomorrow. She'll be rested up, fresh mind. She'll be okay tomorrow."

He nodded and stood up. "I'm gonna…get going then. The sooner I find Vicki, the better."

"Yeah," I agreed as I stood up. "Let me know when you find her?"

"Of course," he smiled.

I smiled back and watched as he sped off to look for Vicki. Even if Elena still had her mind set on not seeing Stefan in the morning, I was still going to talk to him. Stefan was a good guy. He was a great guy.

I sighed and went back in the house, hopefully to get some rest myself.


	7. Haunted

**And with this chapter, the story is officially caught up to the other. The updates will be coming slower now, but I won't make you guys wait forever. Just so everyone knows, there's links on my profile so far to Sam's locket, her Founder's party dress, and now her costume for this chapter.**

**Thanks for reading!**

**Oh and I forgot to disclaim before, but I own nothing- obviously- except Sam, Elizabeth, Chastity, and all other original characters.**

* * *

I woke up the next morning to a text from Stefan. I immediately opened it and let out a sigh of relief. He and Damon found Vicki. Wait…Damon? Damon helped find Vicki? Why would he do that when he was the one to set her loose in the first place? Unless…maybe…

Maybe him helping Stefan was a sign. That is, if that's what Damon was doing. Maybe there was hope their relationship could be saved. Damon just had a lot of anger he needed to let go of.

I sat up when I heard knocking at my door.

"Sam? You awake?" Elena asked through the door.

"I'm up," I told her.

She opened my door and poked her head in.

"Jeremy went to go join a search party to look for Vicki," she said. "I didn't stop him. I don't know what to tell him."

I pressed my lips together. I hated keeping things from him, but maybe we could get away with telling Matt and Jeremy she went to rehab. Then again, they would want to see her. Maybe…

"Should we tell him?" I asked. "About…you know, the whole-"

"No," she said immediately. "No, I don't want him having anything to do with this. It's way too dangerous for him to know."

"But maybe it'll be better," I said. "I mean, Stefan didn't tell you and look how well that turned out."

She sighed, looking like she was actually considering it. Then she shook her head.

"No," she said firmly again. "We can't tell him. Not yet anyway. Let's just get through today and then we'll deal with it."

"Okay," I said reluctantly.

I didn't want my brother to be in danger, but the idea of him not knowing about this stuff just seemed less safe than if we just told him. I left it up to Elena though. She was the oldest of the three of us, so it was her call.

"I just feel bad letting him go out there to look for her," Elena continued. "I know they're not going to find anything."

"Yeah, Stefan said he found her. Him and Damon," I told her.

She furrowed her eyebrows.

"When did he tell you that?" she asked warily.

"Just this morning," I said holding up my phone. "He texted me."

She folded her arms and sighed. It was the sigh that said she didn't like something I said.

"Sam, I thought really hard last night," she said. "And a lot this morning and…I don't think I should see Stefan anymore. It could put Jenna, Jeremy, you, and me in a lot of danger. I mean, Caroline was example enough that Damon is willing to hurt anyone to hurt Stefan."

"Then you should tell him," I said, looking at my feet.

Honestly, I was sad that she didn't want to see him anymore, but in the end it was her choice. If she thought not seeing Stefan was best for her, then that's up to her. I noticed then how silent she had been, not even saying anything to my previous suggestion. She wanted me to tell him, didn't she?

"Elena-"

"Please, Sam," Elena said. "I can't see him. Not for a while at least."

"You're not even going to go to the boarding house to at least see Vicki?"

She bit her lip, pondering over it. Finally she sighed.

"I'll drive us there before we go to school," she said. "And I'll tell Stefan myself."

* * *

Elena had changed her mind at the last minute about going to see Stefan. She was pacing around in her room while getting ready to school and she must have over thought something that made her change her mind about going over there to see him. She didn't even want me going over there, but she didn't stop me either. I could tell she was truly afraid of facing the Salvatores- mainly Damon- so I told her I could maybe drop a hint to Stefan about how she felt without actually telling him anything. I could tell she wanted me to tell him outright she didn't want to see him anymore, but she took what I offered anyway.

I knocked on the door of the boarding house, waiting patiently for someone to answer. Despite what I told Elena I'd do for her, I was here for another reason. I had to see how Vicki was doing for myself. Besides that, I couldn't just cut Stefan out of my life like Elena. He couldn't control what he was and he didn't want to hurt us.

My voice died when the door opened and Damon's smirking face appeared in the doorway.

"Well hello dear Samantha," he greeted. He looked around the porch. "No big sister to hide you from me?"

"She went ahead to school," I told him.

"Does big sissy know that you're here?" he challenged with a raised brow and folded arms.

"She does."

"And how does sister dearest feel about you being here?"

I gave him a hard stare and pursed my lips slightly.

"I'm here to see Vicki," I said through narrowed eyes. "You know, the one you turned?"

"Getting snippy on me," he said amused. "Come on in."

He opened the door wider for me and gestured for me to go in. I stepped in only for him to step closer to me at the last second, eliminating any space between us and making my body brush against his. I tried to control my rapid heartbeat and slipped the rest of the way in and crossed my arms across my chest, giving him a look. He simply smirked at me in return.

"What?" he said innocently.

I just shook my head at him.

"Well as much as I'd love to stay, I need to be somewhere," he said winking at me. "I hope to see you around later."

He left, closing the door behind him. Stefan came half-way down the stairs before stopping when he saw me.

"Sam," he said partially surprised and happy.

"Hey Stefan," I smiled.

He walked down the rest of the stairs until he was standing before me.

"I, uh, I didn't know that you were coming over."

"I'm sorry. I should have called or something," I told him sheepishly.

"Hey, you don't have to," he smiled. "You can come over whenever you want. Does Elena…"

"Yeah," I nodded my head. "I wanted to check on Vicki, and you, and she was going to come at first but..."

"She still doesn't want to see me anymore, does she?" he asked.

Like last night, he sounded more like he expected it than sad about it.

"I think you two should talk about that," I said. He nodded understandingly. "Anyway, how's Vicki?"

"I- I'm working with her, but it's gonna take some time," he explained. "She's a volatile and impulsive personality. She's a drug user. I mean, all that's gonna play a part in how she responds to this."

I nodded, taking it all in. The idea of Vicki as a vampire never really resonated well with me, but it's too late now. I knew that Stefan felt responsible for her since he feels it's his fault Damon's here hurting people. I wanted to help him with her. After all, I basically just stood there while Damon fed her his blood and killed her. Besides, I wanted to help her adjust so she could go back to Matt and Jeremy without running the risk of hurting them.

"It's going to take time. Do you-" I began, but stopped. I wasn't sure how to ask this, I mean, I never thought I ever would be asking about something like this. "Do you…need any help? I mean- is there really anything that I can do to help you help her?"

"No," he said instantly. It actually worried me a little how fast he said it. "No, you don't need to do anything. It's actually safer if you don't. The- the smell of your blood…"

He trailed off, but he didn't need to say anymore for me to understand what he was getting at. It would be hard for Vicki to learn control with me around. It'd be like teaching an alcoholic control in a bar.

"Got it," I nodded.

Stefan stiffened a little before his eyes went to the front door.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

I was answered by the front door opening and Elena poking her head in before looking straight at us. Crap.

"Hey," she said warily to Stefan.

"I thought you weren't coming," I said.

"I uh…"

"You wanted to check on Vicki," Stefan said.

"Yeah," Elena said uncomfortably. "How is she?"

"How am I?" a voice sounded from the top of the stairs.

Stefan, Elena, and I all looked up to see Vicki leaning over the balcony on the stairs.

"You're kidding, right?" she asked Elena.

Maybe she's not so good then.

Stefan explained to Vicki about how she could drink animal blood instead of human blood, and how coffee was her new best friend. He mentioned how he wasn't proud of his past behavior, which peaked my interest and obviously made Elena even more uncomfortable than she already was. I wondered what Stefan had done in his past that made him stiffen up like he was at the moment. Everyone makes mistakes, surely anything he did wasn't totally unworthy of forgiveness.

Vicki seemed to be taking everything in fine enough. The only thing she really couldn't understand now was why she had to pee.

"I thought I was dead, why do I have to pee?" she asked.

She got up and left the room. A silence fell over the three of us and I looked from Elena, who was staring at the floor looking like she wished she hadn't come, to Stefan, who met my gaze and gave me a small smile. I smiled back before looking at my phone. I had three missed calls and twenty text messages from a very impatient best friend…

Realizing this was the perfect opportunity, I stood up.

"I um, I'm gonna go call Chastity quick," I announced to Stefan and Elena. "I'll be back."

Elena gave me her 'help me' look and Stefan nodded, the look on his face telling me he knew what I was doing. I swiftly left the room and went to the front hall by the door, pulling my phone out and calling my best friend.

"Where in the hell are you?" she demanded after picking up right away. "I have something to tell you and I'm literally bursting with impatience here."

"I figured," I said to her. "So what's going on? What do you need to tell me?"

"Um…actually, I shouldn't tell you this over the phone? When are you going to be here?"

A crashing in the other room earned my attention.

"Sam? What's going on?"

"I'll call you back, Chas," I said.

I hung up despite her protests and hurried in to the other room only to find Vicki pinning Elena to the wall by her neck.

"Vicki! Let her go!" I said rushing forward.

"And you!" Vicki hissed turning on me.

She released Elena, letting her drop to the floor like a rag doll, and suddenly appeared right in front of me. I gasped and backed up as she glared at me.

"Poor innocent little Sammy needs her big brother so he doesn't pay as much attention to me," she spat. "Quit judging Jeremy! He's a big boy, let him make his own decisions!"

With that, she disappeared, leaving me and a wheezing Elena alone. I immediately rushed to my sister's side, helping her stand and making sure she was okay as Stefan rushed in to the room.

"What happened? Are you alright?" he asked, directing both questions to me.

"I'm fine, I just came in here and Vicki attacked Elena…I'm not sure what happened," I rushed out.

Stefan looked at Elena, waiting for her to explain.

"I said something about it not being safe for her to see Jeremy," she said. "She got angry."

"Let me see your neck," Stefan said gently.

"It's fine," she insisted. "I'll…probably just have a bruise or something."

I moved her hands aside to see for myself and exchanged a look with Stefan, who nodded in agreement with what she said.

"That's all you said and she just snapped?" I asked. It's not that I doubted Elena was telling the truth, I just couldn't believe Vicki snapped over something small like that.

"She's on edge," Stefan said. "Every sense in her body is operating at super speed. It could take months before she even begins to control it."

Elena nodded, looking worried, unhappy and…uncomfortable again.

"She does need to stay away from Jeremy, though," Stefan continued.

"What, you don't think she could actually hurt him, do you?" I asked.

"When you're new, it's hard to separate your feelings," he said looking at us seriously. "Love, lust, anger, desire…it…can all burn into one urge: hunger."

The harshness of the reality hit me like a ton of bricks. Vicki couldn't be around anyone for a while, especially not Jeremy and, now, Elena given the way she reacted to her when she said that she couldn't be around Jeremy.

"Let's go, Sam," Elena said then. "I'll drive you to school."

I looked from her to Stefan, who seemed to notice how uncomfortable Elena still was around him. He looked at me then.

"I'll, uh…I'll catch up to you later," he said.

I nodded and waved at him before following Elena out of the house. She seemed to finally start breathing again as we got to her car.

"You know, you don't have to be so obvious about it," I said to her.

"I can't help it," she said. "I just…I don't know."

"Did you get a chance to talk to him?"

"Vicki came back downstairs before I could and he went to get her more…"

"Blood," I finished.

She winced but nodded. She really wasn't handling this whole vampire situation very well. Which made me wonder…wasn't Elena's reaction normal and mine…less normal? Why was I taking everything so well? I guess different people handled things differently.

* * *

"I should kill you!" Chastity snapped at me as soon as I saw her at school.

Elena and I had gotten there a little later, so we went straight to our first classes. This was my first time seeing Chastity today now after said class.

"I'm so sorry! I was so tired last night and I just knocked right out and I woke up late this morning-"

"That's not why I wanna kill you right now! You had me worried sick on the phone, then you just hang up? What was all that noise?"

I considered telling her the truth for a moment, but there were too many people around us, too many people paying attention to what we were talking about. Besides, it wasn't my secret to tell. So I told her a story about waking up late and knocking over a picture frame or two. She eyed me suspiciously for a moment and the look on her face told me she knew I was lying. I sighed and gave her a look that told her we would talk about it later. She sighed then and looked away.

"Are you going to the carnival tonight?" she asked then.

"I was thinking about it, why?"

"Well you're going now and because I got you a costume."

"I could just wear last year's-"

"No way," she said. "You are not going in last year's couple costume. For all we know, Peter Pan could be going again this year and we are not going to give him any more hope by having Wendy Darling show up too."

"You're right," I said with a firm nod.

Last year, Adam and I had gone to the school's Halloween carnival as Peter Pan and Wendy Darling. It probably wouldn't be good for Adam to move on if I showed up as Wendy again.

"So you're going as an angel," Chastity said then.

"An angel?"

"Yeah, I originally got it for me, but I got roped in to being a witch."

"How'd you get roped in to being a witch?" I asked curiously.

"Originally, Caroline wanted for her, Bonnie, and Olivia to go to the carnival as a trio of witches, but Olivia already has her heart set on being a slutty cat to get Jeremy's attention. So instead of giving up the slutty cat costume- which we all know isn't going to work anyway- Olivia offered me up as the third witch instead and Caroline, shockingly enough, accepted and now even has Bonnie begging me to take the costume."

"I'm surprised you're actually going to do it," I said.

"Normally I wouldn't do squat for Caroline, but Bonnie begged me to so…yeah," she shrugged. I nodded once.

"Have fun with that."

* * *

Later that evening, I prepared myself in my room for the Halloween carnival. Chastity's costume actually fit me perfectly, which probably meant it was a little short on her since she was a good three inches taller than me. I brushed through my waves once more before fastening two parts back in a half up do with a white clip, and then I put the halo headband on to complete the costume.

Elena had already gone ahead to the carnival with Jeremy since he was determined to get there, which honestly surprised me. He wasn't one for going to school events lately…well…not really ever. I told Elena I'd be fine and that I would meet her there, which made her try to convince me to stay home in case Vicki showed up. I was quick to remind her that Stefan wouldn't let Vicki show up if she wasn't in control. She hesitated still, but eventually was okay with me going.

The doorbell rang, making me furrow my eyebrows. Chastity wasn't supposed to be here for another fifteen minutes.

"Oh Samantha! Fair Samantha!" a teasing voice called from downstairs.

I rolled my eyes. Of course he'd just walk in. I sighed and walked down the stairs to see him leaning up against the front door with a smirk on his face as he looked me up and down.

"What are you doing here, Damon?" I asked him.

"You look ridiculously hot in that," he said. "You make a sexy angel."

"Thanks," I said, trying hard not to blush. "What are you doing here?"

"Thought I'd pick you up."

"And take me where exactly?"

"To the school, of course," he said obviously. "Can't have you going alone now can I?"

"How'd you know Elena and Jeremy already left?"

"I didn't," he smirked. "I was going to take you even if they were here and…if I was feeling nice, I would have offered them a ride too."

I gave him a look.

"Okay…maybe I wouldn't have."

I sighed and went to go back upstairs.

"I'll get my phone," I said.

"Nice underwear!"

"Damon!" I shouted, whirling around and sitting quickly on the step behind me.

He laughed at my reaction while I narrowed my eyes at him.

"That wasn't funny!"

"To you it wasn't."

* * *

Damon and I arrived at the school a little later. I had texted Chastity on the way over and let her know that I had gotten another ride to the school. She was okay with it since Olivia was "taking for gosh damn ever to squeeze in to her whore cat costume". She told me that the two of them would be here within the next ten minutes.

"Sam!" I heard Adam's voice call me.

"Ooh, look what we have here," Damon teased.

"Be nice," I begged.

He held his hands up innocently as Adam walked over, clad in his Peter Pan costume from last year.

"Hey," I smiled.

"Hey," he smiled back. "I uh…I see you got a new costume. You look great."

"Chastity actually got it for herself," I told him. "Caroline got her to be a witch though."

"Fitting," Adam muttered.

"Be nice," I laughed.

Adam finally seemed to notice Damon was there.

"Oh, hey," he said. "It's…Damon right? We met at the Founder's Party?"

"Right," Damon smiled. "And you are…Adam. The cheating ex-boyfriend."

"Damon," I hissed.

"Yeah…" Adam said slowly, guilt clearly in his voice. "I didn't know that you and Sam talked so much."

"Well she and I have grown very close," Damon said. "We share a lot of secrets. Tell each other lots of things about our past."

"Right," Adam nodded slowly.

"So are you having a good time?" I asked him, trying to shift the subject to something else.

"Trying," he said. "There's this girl...I really care about her, but I really messed up with her." My smile faded, knowing it was me he was talking about.

"Adam, I-"

"Don't say it," he said smiling weakly. "I know I don't deserve it. I don't deserve you. Everything was great, but then I did what I did. There's no excuse for it."

"At least you're owning up to it," Damon said. "Finally realizing that little miss cheerleader Stacey wasn't worth it."

"It's okay," I said, glaring at Damon. "I got over it. You can too. We've been doing great as friends."

"You're right," Adam said. "I…I'm gonna go find Tyler. I heard he's got his Lockwood special."

"Okay," I nodded with a small, sad smile.

He walked off and I turned to Damon, glaring at him.

"What?" he asked.

"How do you know what happened between us? How did you know about Stacey?"

"Read your diary."

I gave him a look.

"Caroline blabbed."

"Great," I said.

"Sam," Stefan called suddenly with Elena behind him. "Have you seen Jeremy?"

"No," I said. "Why? Is...is Vicki here?"

He nodded and took my hand.

"We've got to get you and Elena out of here and find her."

I suddenly felt myself being yanked out of Stefan's grasp. I looked shocked at Damon, who was looking at Stefan through annoyed and livid eyes.

"You take Elena and look around in here," Damon said. "I'll take Sam and we'll look outside."

Stefan stepped up to his brother.

"You actually think I trust you to take her outside alone?" he questioned Damon.

"You're wasting time, brother," Damon said, not backing down and not releasing my hand.

Stefan looked away from Damon to me. I nodded after a moment.

"He's right," I said. "We're wasting time. Besides, we'll cover more ground if we split up."

Stefan still didn't seem convinced.

"I'll be safe," I assured him. "I…I trust Damon."

Elena was looking at me with clear disbelief. Stefan slightly winced at my words, but seemed to accept and trust my faith in Damon. He led Elena through the halls while I turned to Damon, who had a surprised expression on his face.

"What?" I asked, genuinely confused. He shook his head quickly.

"Nothing," he said. "Let's go."

* * *

Damon and I had searched outside for any sign of Vicki or my brother, all the while Damon avoided saying anything about whatever was clearly still on his mind. We had just rounded a corner when Damon stopped me suddenly and stood still.

"What?" I asked him.

"I hear your brother," he answered.

"Where?" I asked with wide eyes.

He stood for a moment, carefully listening. He straightened up and grabbed my hand.

"Around back," he said. "Might be faster if I…"

I got the hint and nodded, giving him permission. He quickly scooped me up like I weighed no more than a feather.

"You may wanna close your eyes," he warned.

I clamped my eyes shut, flinching only a little when I felt us start to move. The wind blew my hair in my face and I could feel some of it getting caught in my lip gloss. Gross. We stopped and I felt Damon set me down before I opened my eyes, gasping at what I saw.

Vicki was on the ground, her skin grey and a mask of sheer surprise mixed with pain on her face. She was…she was dead.

I looked up from Vicki's dead body to see my sister standing by Stefan, clutching on to her neck where she seemed to be bleeding.

"Elena," I said rushing to her side.

"Sam," she breathed, wrapping her arms around me when I got to her.

"You're bleeding! Oh my god, what happened?" I asked hurriedly.

"Vicki…" was all she said. "I'm fine though. Stefan saved me."

I looked over at Stefan, who looked incredibly guilty. I knew by that that he was the one who killed Vicki to save Elena. I furrowed my eyebrows then. Damon said he heard Jeremy. So where was he? Elena seemed to catch on to my thinking and she nodded over to the left. I followed where she was looking and saw Jeremy, my big brother, on the ground crying Vicki's name. He had seen. He had seen everything.

Unlatching myself from Elena, I went straight to Jeremy and gently wrapped my arms around him, my heart breaking even more when he clutched on tightly to my arms. I heard Elena ask Stefan to take both of us home and I didn't have the heart to argue with her. I didn't want to leave Jeremy. Plus I didn't want to know what they would do with Vicki. The only thing running through my mind was that Jeremy had lost yet another person he loved. I didn't know how he was going to make it through this.

* * *

**-Third POV-**

After Stefan got Jeremy and Sam out to his car, Elena looked at Damon with hard eyes.

"You might wanna go with them," Damon said, not in the mood for her judgment. "That bite looks nasty."

"This is your fault, you know?" Elena spat. "Vicki is dead because of you."

"You confuse me with someone with remorse," he said. He caught her hand when she tried to slap him. "None of this matters to me. None of it."

"People die around you, how could it not matter? It matters and you know it!"

She caught him off guard and slapped him.

"You need to leave. Your wounds are bleeding and you need to leave," Damon said dangerously.

Elena glared at him in disgust.

"I don't know what she sees in you or how she trusts you," she said before storming off, leaving him alone.

Damon stood there silently for a moment. He didn't know what Sam saw in him either. He'd been nothing but a cocky, psychopathic jerk who had done nothing to deserve her trust, yet she trusted him anyway. He had lied to Elena earlier. This did matter to him. Not because of Vicki, or because of Jeremy, but because of her. Maybe…maybe Sam was starting to make him feel again. Maybe she was starting to fix him.

* * *

Damon arrived at the Gilbert house later after burying Vicki in the woods and saw Stefan and Elena outside on the porch talking.

"Can you make him forget?" Elena asked.

"Elena…" Stefan sighed.

"Stefan, please," she begged. "I don't know how he'll ever get past this. I just want him to forget everything that happened."

"If I did it, there is no guarantee that it would work," Stefan told her. "Because of who I am, how I live. I don't have the ability to do it right."

"I can do it," Damon finally spoke up, earning their attention. He walked closer toward them and looked at Elena. "Where is she?"

"Inside with Jeremy," she replied stonily.

"They fell asleep about ten minutes ago," Stefan told him.

"Well, I'll wake him up and I'll do it," Damon said. "What do you want him to know?"

"Why would you do this?" Elena asked. "Why would you help?"

"I have my reasons," Damon said. "First one being I can't have your brother running around blabbing about the existence of vampires."

Elena stared at him for a moment while Stefan looked away, knowing that even though that may be a reason, it wasn't the primary reason why Damon was willing to compel Jeremy. Elena hesitated, but told Damon to tell Jeremy a story about how Vicki ran away and that even though he'll miss her, he'll know it's for the best. Damon didn't have a problem with it, neither did Stefan. It was her next request that surprised them and somewhat angered them.

"Can you make Sam forget too?" she asked.

"What?" Damon asked incredulously.

"She's younger than Jeremy is. He shouldn't know, so neither should she," Elena said. "She's too young to be involved in this.

"Well she is," Damon said. "I'll compel Jeremy, but not Sam."

With that, he walked in to the house to do just that. Elena turned to Stefan then.

"Why won't he compel her?" she asked.

Stefan just shook his head.

"I don't know," Stefan said. "But it's probably best if he doesn't."

"So you want her involved in all of this?" Elena asked with a hard tone.

"I don't want her to get hurt, but I also don't want to take her choice away," Stefan said.

Elena scoffed, not liking the idea of having her little sister involved in a dangerous situation, before going back inside the house to wait for Damon to be done.

Upstairs, Damon finished compelling Jeremy and lifted Sam up from his bed. He carried her in to her own room and tucked her in her bed, stroking her hair gently before kissing her cheek and turning her light off.


	8. 162 Candles

**Quick question guys, do you like the Sam/Damon pairing (or Damantha as my friend puts it) or would you be more in to a Sam/Stefan pairing?**

**I'm just curious because the friend I have editing says that she likes Sam and Stefan together. That's not the plan, but again I'm just curious. **

**So what do you think? Sam and Damon or Sam and Stefan?**

* * *

**-Third POV-**

"Come on, let's go! I mean, what's keeping you here!" a very pretty blonde vampire said to Stefan.

Stefan's oldest and best friend, Lexi, had surprised him earlier that day by visiting him on a very special day: his birthday.

She and Stefan were catching up, he was telling her about some of the things that have been happening in Mystic Falls and was warning her that she needed to be careful while there. She had informed him that she was not staying for long and that Bon Jovi was going to be performing in New York in the Garden.

"I told you," he said in response to her trying to coax him in to leaving Mystic Falls.

"Right, Elena," Lexi said. "And who was the other one? The ever mysterious Samantha?"

"That's them," Stefan confirmed with a nod.

"Well let's hope they're better than the last girls you got all sprung over," Lexi sighed as she walked over to the desk in Stefan's room, holding up the pictures of Katherine and Elizabeth.

Stefan smiled a bit and took the photos back.

"You didn't even know Katherine or Elizabeth," he said.

"Cause if I did, I'd kick their asses," Lexi retorted. "Especially Elizabeth's. Little bitch. Speaking of, where's Damon?"

"Inflicting misery somewhere," Stefan answered. "You gonna be okay here alone? Cause I got some things I gotta take care of."

"It's not exactly like I can go anywhere," Lexi complained, looking outside at the sunlight. "And you and Damon are the only ones with these nifty little daylight rings."

She smirked as an idea popped in her head and she held up her hand.

"I have a mood ring from '75. Trade ya?"

He smirked at her and shook his head.

"Doesn't work that way and you know it," he told her.

"Yeah," Lexi sighed.

"Hey Lex, I'm really glad you came here," he told her sincerely.

"Ok, what are we doing for your birthday?" she asked teasingly. "It's not everyday a guy turns 162 years old."

"Really?" Stefan groaned.

"Oh, yeah," his best friend grinned.

* * *

**-Sam's POV-**

I walked down the steps of the police station with Jeremy, Elena, and Jenna. Sheriff Forbes had questioned Elena, Jeremy, Matt, Stefan, and I about Vicki.

The cover story- as I was told this morning- was that Vicki ran away. I felt guilty for lying and letting Sheriff Forbes- and Matt- believe Vicki left town. What made me feel even worse was that they were so willing to believe it because of her serious drug problem. I wished that the lies were true. I wished Vicki really ran away because at least then she'd still be alive and she'd still have a chance.

Life wasn't fair sometimes though.

What I didn't understand was Jeremy. He had lied so easily and last night he had been so broken up about it all. By the time I woke up this morning I had to rush to get ready because Sheriff Forbes wanted to talk to us right away, so I didn't get the chance to talk to him about what happened last night. I assumed Elena had, but I didn't get the chance to ask her.

"I'll meet you guys in the car," Elena said suddenly.

I looked over at her then followed her gaze to Stefan. I gave him a small smile and waved my greeting. He returned the smile and waved back, but that smile was quickly dropped and replaced with his usual brooding face when Elena walked over.

I turned to Jeremy then.

"How are you doing?" I asked him. "You seem a lot better than you were last night."

"Yeah, I guess I was just shocked," he said. "I mean I didn't expect Vicki to really up and leave town like that."

I furrowed my eyebrows. He was talking to me, he knew I knew what really happened so why did he keep going with the lie?

"I'll miss her, but I think it's for the best," he said then.

That…that's exactly what he told Jenna- and no doubt Sheriff Forbes- earlier today. Word for word. Did…

I glanced over at Stefan and Elena, the latter who was now turning and walking away from the former. They wouldn't…

* * *

"You did what?!"

"Sam, it was the only way!"

When we got home, Elena went upstairs to her room and I followed her. I told her about what Jeremy said to me while she was talking to Stefan and she confessed to asking Stefan to compel Jeremy to forget what really happened to Vicki and make him believe that he left town, but in the end it had actually been Damon who compelled him due to the fact that Stefan's diet would make it almost impossible for his compulsion to work right.

The fact that Elena wanted to heal Jeremy's pain was understandable, but she didn't have the right to mess with his mind and make him forget her like this! It wasn't up to her, it's Jeremy's life.

"I can't believe you compelled him," I said. A thought came to me then. "What about me? Did you ask them to compel me too?"

She looked guilty.

"Yes," she admitted. "But…neither of them would do it."

"Why?" I couldn't help but ask.

"Stefan didn't want to take your choice away," Elena told me. "And Damon…who knows."

Damon. Maybe I really had made a friend in him. Even though I was so angry at him for turning Vicki in the first place, the thought actually made me happy. The fact that he didn't want me to forget about what happened to Vicki, that he and Stefan didn't want to take my choice away. It really made my heart flutter…

"Are you mad?" Elena asked worried.

I didn't have the heart to be. What she did was wrong, downright controlling, but she had good intentions. She just didn't want to see our brother hurt and I could understand that.

"No," I sighed finally. "I just…I wish you wouldn't have done that to him."

"It was the best thing for him," she said. "You saw him last night, Sam. It was like mom and dad died all over again."

She was right.

* * *

Later that day, I sat upstairs in my room. I wasn't sulking, more like brooding. Brooding over everything that's happened.

Jeremy was downstairs doing homework. Not a big deal, he just…hasn't done homework in a very long time. There was that, then there was Jenna. The Vicki action made me completely forget that Logan Fell died, but not before trying to get back together with Jenna. Now, Jenna believes that she was sent a crappy, brush off email from him saying that he was leaving town. I felt worse for lying to Jenna about what was going on since she was our guardian, but it was for her protection. At least that's what Elena has been trying to convince me of.

In short, Jenna was sulking, Elena was sulking over the end of her relationship with Stefan even though I still believe that one is completely fixable, and Jeremy was doing homework. Jenna decided to follow his example and went to work on her thesis while Elena went to her own room to sulk in her bed. I hated that my sister was feeling down, so I did what I had to do and called in reinforcements. Bonnie should be here any minute.

A knock sounded on my door and before I could say anything it was being thrown open and there was a certain unhappy looking blonde standing in the doorway.

"You have been shirking big time on your best friend duties," Chastity said scoldingly.

I groaned and hit forehead with the palm of my head.

"Right!" I said. "You wanted to tell me something! I'm so sorry, it's just that with everything that happened with Vicki-"

"I get it," Chastity said as she walked over to my windows. "But still, you know, ya might wanna make some time for your best friend who has something incredibly mind blowing and important to share with you."

"Okay, share," I encouraged her.

"First, you need to be sworn to secrecy," she said.

"I swear I won't tell anyone," I said honestly. "Now…what is it? It's not something bad is it?"

"Just…wait for it," she said with one finger up.

She closed the curtains and then her eyes.

I tilted my head a bit in question, but before I could say anything all the candles in my room lit up all at once. My eyes widened. I had a total of 38 candles in my collection that my mom got me started on and they all just…lit up. By themselves...

"Oh my god…" I said amazed. I looked at Chastity who now had her eyes open. "How did-"

"That's not all," she said. "Is the air conditioning on? Or any fans."

"No…"

She walked over to my bed and ripped one of my pillows, letting the feathers fall all over my bed. I stared at her questioningly, ready to question what she did that for, but all the words died in my throat when the feathers lifted in to the air. It was almost like a snowfall had frozen while snowflakes were still falling. It was…beautiful…even more so in the soft light glow the candles gave off.

I laughed and sat up on my knees, putting my hands under the floating feathers. Chastity made this happen! That had to mean…

"I'm a witch! It all makes sense now. I mean, it's impossible…but it's all true!"

She seemed excited, but I could also tell she was nervous about it. I sat back and looked at her.

"Why would you tell me?" I couldn't help but ask.

"Because you're my best friend," she said obviously. "I tell you everything."

The happy moment was shattered and replaced by a sick feeling of guilt again. No matter how much I wanted to, though, I couldn't tell her. Stefan and Damon being vampires wasn't my secret to tell.

Maybe I didn't have to though. I didn't have to tell her exactly _who_ was a vampire, just that vampires existed. I mean, by what the Salvatores and Elena told me she already knew judging by the vervain in my locket.

I swallowed and sat back down and looked at her.

"Chas," I said softly. "There's something we should talk about."

The feathers dropped.

* * *

"Whoa," she said after I told her about vampires. "Just…whoa."

I didn't tell her who was a vampire, she figured Vicki was turned in to one on her own.

"How long have you known?" I asked her.

"What uh…what makes you think I knew?" she asked slightly nervous.

"The locket you gave me," I said. "It has vervain."

"So you know what that is," she said to herself. "Glad they told you about it. Witches know about vampires, my aunt was the one who told me after your dinner party. Bonnie's Grams hasn't told her yet and she's asked us not to say anything to her. I didn't tell you because I thought you'd think I'm insane."

I smiled, letting her know I understood before I frowned again.

"You said you're glad they told me about it. Who's they?" I asked.

She got fidgety and looked down nervously.

"Chas," I pressed.

"I know about Stefan and Damon," she said finally.

* * *

Later, I was at the boarding house with Elena. Since Elena and I were in their circle of trust, we were able to talk about how our best friends told us they were witches.

"I don't know what I'm doing here," Elena said after we got to the door.

"Well you're here now," I said with a shrug before she sighed again and rang the doorbell.

"It's open, come on in!" a female voice called.

Elena furrowed her eyebrows and looked at me, as if I knew who that was. I shrugged and opened the door, letting Elena and myself in the house. We stepped further in and looked around for the source of the voice for a bit before we were met by a blonde girl with nothing but a towel wrapped around her naked body.

"Oh my god," she said, taking a step back when she saw us.

I glanced over to my sister, who seemed just as surprised to see her. The girl lifted a finger.

"How- uh-"

I furrowed my brows in confusion. She seemed to be at a total loss for words and I had no idea why. I don't think Elena even noticed since she was too distracted by the fact that there was a practically naked girl in the Salvatore house.

"Who?" the girl finally managed to get out after much struggling.

"I'm Elena," Elena said pointing to herself. "This is my sister, Samantha. Who are _you_?"

I almost rolled my eyes at Elena's tone. It was very "this is _my_ boyfriend's house and why are you almost naked in here?".

"Lexi," the girl introduced, still slightly baffled. "A friend of Stefan's."

"Nice to meet you," I smiled at her.

"Is he here?" Elena asked.

"He's in the shower," Lexi told us. "Do you wanna wait?"

"No."

"Sure," I said at the same time.

Elena and I looked at each other.

"Uh…I can tell him you stopped by?" Lexi offered.

"That's okay," Elena said uncomfortably.

She nearly ran out of the house and I sighed before looking over at Lexi.

"Go ahead and let him know we came by," I said kindly. "And tell him happy birthday for me."

She smiled at me and nodded. "I'll tell him."

I smiled once more at her before going outside to my very confused sister.

* * *

**-Third POV-**

Lexi waited until the girls were gone before she ran upstairs to Stefan's room where he was just getting his shirt on.

"Are you out of your freaking mind?" she demanded as soon as she stepped foot in his room.

"What are you talking about?" he asked confused.

She went over to his desk and picked up the pictures of the two bitches she hated from the stories, showing him the one she hated least first.

"I just met Elena," she said waving Katherine's picture before switching to Elizabeth's. "And her sister, Samantha."

Stefan took a step forward, knowing he was in for it with his best friend.

"You have some serious explaining to do."

"You have some serious emotional damage," Lexi concluded after Stefan finished his story.

"No, it's not what you think," he insisted. "Elena is not Katherine and Sam is definitely not Elizabeth."

"Then they're all related because Katherine and Elena could be twins. Same with Sam and Elizabeth."

"I don't know," Stefan said.

"You don't know? You didn't find out?" Lexi questioned.

"No, maybe I don't wanna know," Stefan told her. "I have- I have no desire to tie Elena to Katherine or Sam to Elizabeth."

Lexi looked away from her compact mirror and gave him a look.

"Okay, yes, yes the resemblance is what drew me in. Elena looking so much like Katherine and then I stayed because then I met Sam and saw how she resembled Elizabeth, but that's it. Katherine and Elena may look alike and Sam and Elizabeth may look alike on the outside, but they are all completely different people on the inside."

"Oh so Elena's not a sidekick, side chick bitch and Sam's not a raging, psychotic bitch then, huh?" Lexi smirked.

"No," Stefan smiled. "Sam is..she's kind. She's warm and loving and…selfless. She's always there for the people she loves and she's been an amazing friend to me. Elena…elena's also warm. She's like Sam, she's kind, and caring, and selfless…and it's real. Honestly, when I'm with her…I forget what I am."

"Oh my god," Lexi said softly. "You're in love with her."

Stefan just smiled and nodded slightly.

"Yeah," he said. "Yeah I am."

* * *

**-Sam POV-**

"Stefan!" I exclaimed as I came down the stairs.

All I heard upstairs was "Right. The girl in the towel." I knew I needed to step in before Elena said something else she'd regret.

"Hey Sam," Stefan smiled.

I rushed up to him and pulled him in a tight hug.

"Happy birthday!" I told him.

"Thank you. I still can't believe you remember. I told you once."

"I have a thing with dates. They just stick in my head," I told him.

"It's your birthday?" Elena asked surprised.

"Yes, Elena. Remember he told you the night of the back to school bonfire when you guys were talking. You told me like…everything."

Elena blushed heavily. I turned back to Stefan then.

"Hey, where's your _friend_?"

"My friend."

"Yeah, Lexi."

I gave him a look and subtly glanced at Elena. His mouth formed an 'o' in understanding.

"She's at the Grille," he said. "I'm meeting her there later."

"Oh so you're going to Caroline's party to celebrate your…162nd…birthday?"

"Ugh, Lexi's dragging me," he told me.

"How long have the two of you been friends?" I asked truly curious.

"A very long time," he replied. "She's…350 years old. My oldest friend."

"Oh so she's a vampire?"

Elena stiffened at the word, but I ignored it.

"Yes."

"And there's nothing romantic there?"

"Not ever."

I smiled again before looking over at Elena, who seemed very ashamed for jumping to conclusions and she also looked very relieved.

"Oh," she said. "Okay. Well…she kept staring at us. It was weird."

"Well, I talked about you a lot. And I've told her a lot about Sam too and what a great friend she's been. She probably felt like she knew the two of you," Stefan said.

I could tell Elena needed to talk to Stefan about whatever it was she was going to the house for earlier, so I excused myself and told them I needed to grab my phone from upstairs- which wasn't a total lie since it was still in my room- to give them the chance to talk.

I went in my room and checked my phone, noticing five text messages and three missed phone calls. I also had a couple voicemails. All from the same person. Mister Salvatore. And not the one downstairs.

Message 1: **Come to the Grille. I'm bored and need entertainment.**

Message 2: **I don't usually use this word, but PLEASE come to the Grille!**

Message 3: **Samantha Gilbert if you are ignoring me it won't end well for you.**

Message 4: **Sammy pleeeasse come. I miss your company.**

Message 5: **Pretty please? :(**

I didn't even bother to listen to the voicemails since I was 95% sure that they were saying the same thing his texts were saying, just in his voice.

"I actually think I'm just going to stay in tonight," I heard Elena tell Stefan.

"No she's not!" I called down.

I poked my head down the stairs. Stefan looked amused while Elena was half glaring at me and half looking at me with a "why?" expression.

"We are going to the Grille to help Stefan celebrate his birthday. Whether you like it or not Miss Elena Gilbert."

"Are you…are you sure Sam's the little sister here?" Stefan asked Elena amused.

"Not always," she sighed.

* * *

"The fair Samantha finally graces this dump with her presence!"

I rolled my eyes.

"Hello Damon," I greeted.

I had come to the Grille with just Stefan. Sometimes, my darling sister could be more stubborn than me. Stefan saw Matt as soon as we entered and he went over to him to try to clear the air about him really wanting to help Vicki. That was when Damon came over to me.

"I got a hello. That's better than the cold shoulder," he smirked.

"Figure I should cut you some slack since I'm sure you'll be getting worse when my sister comes," I told him with a smile.

That's right. Elena would be coming sooner or later tonight.

"Ah. Big sissy isn't happy. Does it get tiring for her? Being so righteous?"

"It might flare up in the presence of psychopaths."

"Ouch. Well consider this psychopath's feelings hurt."

"Damon," Stefan greeted his brother stiffly. "Sam, you alright?"

"I'm fine," I assured him with a smile. "Now let's go. Give me a proper introduction to Lexi."

"You got it," Stefan chuckled.

I walked past Damon with Stefan toward the pool tables where I saw that familiar head of long blonde hair.

"Lexi!" Stefan called to her.

She looked over with a big grin that faltered just a tiny bit when she saw me. It turned back to a smile though and she came right up to us.

"You're the famous Samantha," she said.

"Oh, call me Sam," I told her. "My ancestor was Samantha Gilbert."

Stefan furrowed his brows a little at the name of the ancestor I was named after, but I didn't think much of it. Stefan seemed to have furrowed brows often.

"Okay Sam," Lexi smiled. "I'm Lexi. It's nice to meet you fully clothed."

"That was an awkward situation," I admitted. "I'm really sorry about that. I hope Elena didn't give you the impression she didn't like you."

"Well. Not really," Lexi lied. I stared at her momentarily before she relented. "Okay she really did."

"I'm sorry," I said. "She's just…confused with the whole…situation. The vampire thing."

"Oh, well that's understandable," Lexi said. "I just hope she comes around for Stefan's sake."

"Oh she will. Give her time. Two hours, max," I told them. "Now, Mister Salvatore, let's get to celebrating your birthday! Let's party!"

Lexi laughed.

"I like her," she told Stefan.

* * *

We danced, we talked, we laughed, and we played pool. Stefan, Lexi, and I had an amazing time. Lexi even referred to the three of us as the three musketeers when a group of three guys challenged us to a game of pool. We beat them, no problem. She also told me about her human-turned-vampire boyfriend.

"You turned him?" I asked.

She looked at me with a smile.

"When it's real, you can't walk away," she said.

I frowned, but then smiled.

"I like the way you think."

About two hours in to the party, Elena showed up. I smiled, happy that she came, and excused myself from the current match between Stefan and Lexi.

"You came!" I said happily.

"Better to be here than sitting at home wallowing," she told me, watching Stefan and Lexi with a smile.

"Why don't you go over there?" I suggested. "You'd like her. She's super nice and really cool."

Someone suddenly stepped in our line of vision, blocking the view of Stefan and Lexi. He turned his head toward us and I sighed. Damon.

"Stefan smiles. Alert the media," he taunted Elena.

"You haven't given him many reasons to smile," she shot back. She turned to me. "Maybe I will go introduce myself."

She walked up to Stefan and Lexi then, leaving me with Damon. She must have really trusted he wouldn't do anything in a public place, which made me somewhat happy. She was starting to accept the whole vampire thing, little by little.

"Well that was just rude," Damon said, feigning hurt. "Maybe the psychopath wanted to talk to your sister."

"Okay, psychopath, let me ask you something," I said stepping closer to him. "What did you do to Jeremy and why?"

"I'm going to need a less vague question, Sammi dear."

"When…Elena asked you to do what you did to his memory. Why did you do it? And what else did you do?"

"I took away his suffering," he said simply. "Elena asked me to delete all the fangs and rawr and crying, so I did."

"And why did you do that?"

"Well I didn't need your brother blabbing to anyone that would listen that vampires exist," he said.

I opened my mouth and closed it again. I needed to know the answer to this next question badly.

"Why didn't you do it to me?" I asked. "I know Elena asked you. So why didn't you?"

Damon looked truly stunned, like he hadn't expected me to ask. Either that or he just didn't know the answer.

"I-…because…"

Instead of answering, he turned and walked away. So much for getting an answer from him.

* * *

The party ended. I decided to give Elena some time with Stefan and Lexi while I spent it time with Chastity. I had already told Stefan Chastity knew about him and Damon and he was fine with it. He wasn't surprised she was a witch, he suspected it, and he had hoped that now that they knew about each other that they would become friends. I hoped the same and Chastity was sure that they would get along fine.

I didn't notice when the cops, led by Caroline's mother, barged in and dragged Lexi away. It wasn't until when she got home that Elena told me Lexi was killed by Damon right in front of Sheriff Forbes. That's why I was racing to the boarding house now.

"Stefan!" I called when I got inside.

I entered the living room where I found him sitting on the couch, holding a glass of bourbon. He turned his head to me, following me as I walked around the couch to him.

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

"I heard about Lexi," I said. "Elena told me. Stefan, I'm so sorry."

"I almost killed him," he confessed. "I almost killed my brother for what he did, but your sister was right. No matter how much…pain he causes, I wouldn't be able to go through with it."

I sat beside him as he took a drink from his glass.

"You know, Elena was right from the start," he continued. "You two really should stay away from me."

"Stefan-"

"Wherever I go, Damon follows. Wherever Damon goes, pain and death and suffering follow," he said. "It's a never ending cycle and I'll never be rid of him. And now…he just went too far."

I could see the unshed tears shining in his eyes and my heart broke. I scooted closer to Stefan and wrapped my arms around him. His head drooped down on my shoulder and he cried for his lost friend while I comforted him. From the corner of my eye I saw a shape enter the living room silently and I switched my eyes to his, a glare on my face.

Damon watched his brother and I know I saw a flash of remorse on his face. That made my face soften. He regretted it. He still killed Lexi, but he regretted it. Any other psychopath would have reveled in the kill, but I know he wasn't reveling.

He regretted it.


	9. History Repeating

"I need your help," Chastity said urgently the next morning. "Yours and Elena's."

I had just gotten to school with Elena when Chastity ran up to me, begging to talk to me alone. Elena walked off with Caroline and Olivia to give us our privacy.

"With?" I questioned.

She looked around briefly before turning back to me and leaning in slightly.

"Bonnie," she answered.

"What's wrong with Bonnie?" I asked instantly concerned for her.

"She's been having these weird dreams," Chastity said. "They're all of Emily and she slept-walked to the cemetery."

"Wait, what?"

"Bonnie woke up in a cemetery this morning," she elaborated. "She has no idea how or when she even got there, but she did."

"Do you know?" I asked.

Chastity pressed her lips together and released a big breath of air through her nose.

"I have an idea," she admitted. "The crystal."

"That crystal Damon gave Caroline?" I asked with a raised brow.

Bonnie had told Elena and I all about the ugly crystal Damon gave Caroline, who then gave it to Bonnie when she was done with Damon. As far as I knew, Caroline was trying to get it back from Bonnie- most likely for Damon and who knew what he wanted it for. I wanted to ask him, but I knew he wouldn't tell me.

"That's the one," Chastity confirmed. "Dammit, I don't know what to do here."

"Calm down," I said gently at her stressed tone. "Have you talked to your aunt? Or Bonnie's Grams?"

"They both said that Bonnie needs to embrace it and listen to Emily," she replied. "Is it bad that I'm glad I'm not the one being haunted here?"

I sighed and looked at her.

"What about Olivia?" I asked then. "Does she even know?"

"Aunt Claire has told her numerous times that we're witches, but Little Miss Livia is a master in the art of denial," she sighed. "I even showed her the feather trick and she didn't believe it."

"She's been told she's a witch and after you showed her that, she still doesn't believe it?" I asked surprised.

"Nope."

I didn't know what to say after that. You could only go so long denying something with it right in your face. I have learned that over the past couple months.

"Come on," Chastity said then. "We'll be late for class."

I blinked again, still thinking about the dreams Bonnie's been having before following Chastity inside the school.

* * *

"So he's letting you do extra credit to get back on track?" I asked Jeremy.

He and I were walking through the halls together a little later on and he just told me about his meeting with the new history teacher, Alaric Saltzman. He said Mr. Saltzman made a deal with him; Jeremy writes a paper for extra credit and his grade shoots up like a rocket. A clean slate from Mr. Tanner.

"Yeah," Jeremy said happily. "I have a week."

"That's awesome," I grinned. "I'm so glad he's giving you another chance."

"Believe me, so am I," he said.

His attention was pulled away then by something behind me so I looked over my shoulder to see what and saw Stefan watching us, seeming to be waiting until we were done talking.

"Hey, I gotta get to class," Jeremy said then. "I'll see you later."

"Yeah, see ya," I smiled.

Jeremy walked away, sending a glance in Stefan's direction. I walked up to Stefan then and tucked a lock of hair behind my ear.

"You had Elena worried," I told him, recalling how she texted me saying Stefan wasn't in class. She was really worried he killed Damon and went in to some self-destructive mode after. I assured her that Stefan didn't kill Damon, I was at the house long enough to be sure he didn't.

"I know," he said looking down. "She told me."

"You talked to her?"

"Outside, yeah," he nodded. "She's…not very happy with me right now. Which is a good thing."

"Okay…why?" I asked.

He sighed.

"I'm not coming to school anymore," he said. "I'm going to…distance myself from it."

I stared at him, shocked and hurt. I knew when he said he was going to distance himself, he didn't just mean from school.

"You're doing it to protect Elena, aren't you?" I asked knowingly.

"Not just Elena, you too," Stefan insisted. "Damon is dangerous. Lexi was proof enough that he's willing to hurt anyone, even though he claims that was to keep the town off our tracks."

Kill your brother's best friend to protect him and yourself. I had to admit it made sense, but at the same time it was cruel. Lexi didn't deserve to die and Stefan didn't deserve to lose her.

"He has a reason to stay," I realized then. "That's why he did it. Why does he want to stay?"

"He won't tell me," Stefan groaned. "I'm going to try to find out though."

I bit my lip and nodded.

"Okay," I said simply. "So…say you do get Damon to tell you what you want to know…what then?"

"Try to convince him to leave town. Once I'm sure he's gone…maybe I'll leave too. It would make sense, now that Zach's gone."

"You know you don't have to do this, Stefan," I said softly. "You don't have to pull away from us."

He shook his head.

"I want you to be safe," he said. "Your safety and Elena's are what matter here. Not what I want. I'm sorry, Sam."

With that, he turned and walked away before I had the chance to say anything else. It hurt and I knew Elena would be hurt, but I knew it wasn't our call. I would miss my friend and I knew Elena would miss him since I knew she loved him, even if she didn't realize it herself, but it was his choice.

* * *

"Damon did what?" I demanded.

Chastity, Elena, Bonnie, and I were in Bonnie's car after school on our way home. Bonnie had just told us all about Damon coming to school and threatening her.

"He scared the crap out of me," Bonnie said. "He's bad news, guys."

"You need to stay as far away from Damon as possible, Bonnie," Elena told her.

"I'm trying!" Bonnie insisted. "He just keeps showing up!"

"Maybe I should pay him a visit," Chastity said. "Aunt Claire's been showing me lots of new spells that can hurt…certain types of people."

I shared a look with her and shook my head. She couldn't hurt Damon, not without risking Damon hurting her back or worse.

"I don't want to kill him, I just want him to leave me alone," Bonnie said.

I sighed.

"You know what, you shouldn't be alone. You're sleeping over at our place tonight," I told her. Then I looked at Chastity. "Both of you."

"Yeah, we can make a whole night out of it," Elena agreed.

Bonnie stayed silent for a moment before pulling over in to a field by the side of the road.

"Whoa," Elena said.

"What are you doing, Bonnie?" Chastity asked.

Bonnie got out of the car and walked toward the field.

"Where are you going?" Elena asked while I furrowed my eyebrows.

The three of us in the car watched Bonnie with curious eyes as she took the necklace off and threw it as far as she could in to the field. She came back looking satisfied with herself.

"Are you okay?" Elena asked like she was losing it.

"Now I am," Bonnie answered. "All my problems were because of that thing. Can't believe I didn't do that sooner."

"You know what your grams is gonna say," Chastity warned.

"Well she's not the one being haunted by a 150 year old ghost, is she?" Bonnie retorted.

"Alright then," I said.

Bonnie began driving back on the road again as I wondered if she was really going to be okay now.

* * *

Elena had her method of getting Damon to back off and that consisted of talking to Stefan and indirectly asking him to get Damon to leave Bonnie alone. My method…

"Stay away from Bonnie," I demanded.

My method consisted of telling Damon straight up to stay away from her.

He smiled at me, seeming amused as he leaned in the doorway of the Salvatore boarding house.

"Well hello to you too, Miss Gilbert," he teased. "Yes, it is a fine evening."

"I'm serious Damon. Leave her alone," I said.

"Tell her I want my necklace back and I will," he shot back.

"What do you even want it for?" I asked exasperated. "Why are you so desperate to get it back?"

"I'm not desperate to get it back," he denied.

"Then why keep bothering Bonnie? Why threaten her and scare her like you did today?" I questioned.

He stared at me for a moment.

"Because it's my crystal and I want it," he said. "It was promised to me by a certain someone Bonnie has a connection to."

"And who is that?"

"Emily Bennett."

I was taken aback. Emily Bennett? As in…Bonnie's ancestor Emily Bennett? Why would she promise Damon her crystal?

"Judging by the look on your face, I take it you know exactly who that is."

"Bonnie said it's a witch's talisman. Emily's talisman. What use to you have for it?" I asked him.

He smirked at me.

"Wouldn't you and Stefan love to know," he said. "Not that I haven't enjoyed this conversation, I was just on my way out. Care to join me?"

"Actually Elena's expecting you back home," a new voice cut in.

Damon's smirk grew and I turned around, seeing Stefan standing just a couple feet behind me. He looked from Damon to me and I could tell by the look in his eye that he wasn't happy I came to see Damon alone.

"How did you get here?" he asked.

"It wasn't that far of a walk," I shrugged.

"Where does Elena think you are?"

"Getting a couple movies," I replied. "I got them on the way here, I-"

"I'll take you back home," Stefan interrupted. "Let's go."

I sighed and bit my lip. His tone didn't leave much room for argument. Besides, Elena was expecting me back home and she already wasn't going to be happy when she found out I came here without telling her. So I followed Stefan to his car, rolling my eyes when Damon said goodbye in that flirty tone he had taken to using with me far too much.

When we were a good distance away from the boarding house, Stefan spoke.

"Care to tell me what you thought you were doing back there?"

I sighed again. Here we go.

* * *

"Did you think that would work?" Stefan asked me after I concluded my short story about what happened at the boarding house before he got there.

"Yes. No. Not really. I was hoping it would," I said.

We arrived at my house and he got out of the car, speeding over to my side and opening my door before I could. I gave a mock curtsey to lighten the mood, which worked since he gave me a small smile and a mock bow. We began walking up to the front porch and I continued.

"I just couldn't let him get away with threatening Bonnie," I said. "I know that I'm probably the last thing he finds terrifying, but…I don't know. I was just so angry at him and when he said he wanted the necklace."

"He told you he wanted it?" Stefan asked surprised. "What else did he say?"

"He said that it was promised to him. By Emily Bennett," I informed him.

I frowned at the look on his face.

"Okay…your face just went in to Stefan brooding mode," I stated. "Did you know Emily?"

"Emily was Katherine and Elizabeth's handmaid," he told me. "That necklace belonged to Elizabeth, given to her by Emily."

"And Emily, for some reason, promised it to Damon," I finished. "So…he either wants that necklace because it belonged to Elizabeth or…there's another reason behind it all. Maybe something to do with why he's still here."

Stefan nodded slowly, his face showing he was still in deep thought.

"I'm going to talk to Damon," he said. "Get some answers out of him."

"You think he'll tell you?"

"I won't give him a choice."

I nodded and set my hand on the door knob.

"Good luck then," I smiled. "Try brother bonding with him."

He gave a small smile.

"No guarantee that'll work, but it's worth a try."

We said our goodbyes and I entered the house. I walked to the kitchen when I didn't see anyone in the living room, frowning immediately when I noticed the tense air in the room. Bonnie, Elena, and Chastity were standing frozen staring wide eyed at Caroline who was holding…the crystal Bonnie threw away in an empty field.

"What's going on?" I asked slightly freaked out.

* * *

"I'm not lying, Caroline. I swear," Bonnie insisted.

Caroline had dropped the crystal on to the counter where the rest of us left it, almost afraid to even touch it. Bonnie had told Caroline earlier before I came in that she threw the crystal away and then Caroline found it in her bag when she was looking for Bonnie's manicure kit.

"It's true, we all watched her throw it in a field," I defended Bonnie.

"Well then explain it," Caroline demanded in a haughty manner.

Bonnie looked away from her to Chastity, Elena, and I.

"Emily," she suggested.

Elena sent Bonnie a look of confusion while Chastity and I exchanged surprised glances. Was this Emily?

"Who's Emily?" Caroline questioned.

"The ghost?" Bonnie reminded Elena.

"Oh, the ghost has a name now?" Caroline mocked in disbelief.

"Caroline, please," Elena said, patiently asking Caroline to stop with insensitivity.

"I wonder why she won't leave me alone," Bonnie said.

"She wants something from you," Chastity said. "But what?"

"Okay, what is going on?" Caroline burst. "Why am I not apart of this conversation? You guys do this to me all the time!"

That caught me off guard and I didn't know what to say. It wasn't a lie, especially in regards to Elena and Bonnie, but I didn't want her to think that. She was clearly hurt about the situation.

"That's not true," Elena told Caroline.

"Yes it is," Bonnie contradicted, sending Elena a look.

She addressed Caroline then.

"I can't talk to you. You don't listen," she told her bluntly.

"That's not true!" Caroline immediately denied.

"I'm a witch," Bonnie told her straight up.

My eyes widened and I looked to Caroline for a reaction.

"And don't we all know it?" Caroline said rolling her eyes.

Ah. So that's what Bonnie was going for.

"See? That's what I'm talking about! I'm trying to tell you something, you don't even hear it," Bonnie shook her head hurt.

Bonnie stormed out and Caroline scoffed.

"I listen," she insisted. "When do I not listen?"

"All the time, shallow one. All the time," Chastity said.

I gave Chastity a scolding glare before following after Bonnie to comfort her.

* * *

A while after the small blowout, I returned to the kitchen to join Elena and Chastity so Caroline and Bonnie could talk things out. We were listening in to make sure everything went alright, which we weren't very subtle about since Caroline told Bonnie she knew were listening to her every word. We giggled a little at that and came in to the living room when Caroline called to us.

"Well there is just way too much drama in this room," Caroline began. "So what do you guys wanna do?"

"Sam got some movies," Chastity began. "We could-"

Caroline gasped suddenly.

"I have an idea," she announced.

Chastity gritted her teeth and I patted her shoulder.

"Down killer," I mumbled to her.

"I will strangle her," she mumbled back.

"Why don't we have a seance?" Caroline suggested.

Elena and I made faces while Chastity flat out shot the idea down.

"I don't think that's a good idea," Bonnie said.

"Come on! Let's summon some spirits," Caroline persisted. "This Emily chick has some serious explaining to do."

My eyes automatically went to Bonnie, giving her a questioning look. She shrugged in return and sighed before nodding reluctantly.

"Okay," I said. "Let's…have a seance."

Before I knew it, we were all sitting in a circle in the darkness of Elena's room lightly illuminated by the soft glow of the candles in the center. I was sitting between Chastity and Caroline, prepared to act as a wall if I had to, and our hands were all joined together.

"What are we doing?" Bonnie asked then.

"I don't know," Elena answered.

"Sh. Be quiet and concentrate," Caroline ordered. "Okay, close your eyes."

I did so reluctantly.

"Okay, now take a deep breath."

I heard everyone follow her lead and take a deep breath.

"Okay Bonnie call to her," Caroline instructed.

"Emily. You there?" Bonnie said flatly.

I opened my eyes, seeing everyone else had too.

"Really? 'Emily, you there?' That's all you got?" Caroline mimicked Bonnie. "Come on."

"Fine. Jeez," Bonnie groaned.

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes again, an action I followed.

"Emily," she said strongly. "I call on you. I know you have a message. I'm here to listen."

The heat from the center of the circle suddenly got more intense and my eyes flew open to see that the flames had grown at least twice their original size before dying back down. Our hands disjoined from shock.

"Did that just-"

"Yeah, that just happened," Caroline cut Elena off.

A sudden breeze went through the room, sending chills down my spine. Caroline visibly shivered and Bonnie immediately blamed it on the air conditioning before the candle flames flared up again.

"Ask her to show you a sign," Caroline told Bonnie. "Ask her."

Bonnie shook her head, her eyes filled with fear.

"Emily, if you're among us, show us another sign," Caroline called.

We all stared down at the candles, almost afraid of what might happen. After a moment of nothing happening, Bonnie spoke up.

"See? It's not working," she said.

I wasn't entirely convinced and I wasn't sure why, but the loud banging of the windows opening served as reason enough why I shouldn't have been.

We all jumped back and Bonnie shot up like a rocket, yanking the crystal off from around her neck and declaring she was done with the seance. The candles suddenly went out and sent Bonnie in to instant panic mode, begging one of us to get the light.

"Hold on, I got it," I assured Bonnie as I rushed to turn the lights on.

I looked to her as soon as they went on, seeing relief wash on her face temporarily before it was replaced once more by fear and panic as she looked down at the candles.

"You guys," she said. "The necklace, it's gone."

We all looked at the spot by the candles where she let the necklace fall. My eyes widened when I saw nothing there but pools of hardened wax on the floor. Where was the necklace?

Elena accused Caroline of taking the necklace, asking as nicely as possible to give the necklace back. Caroline denied it, of course, she didn't take it. I immediately defended Caroline to my sister, believing with all of my heart she was telling the truth and that something else was going on here. Something like…Emily.

Something in the corner of my eye caught my attention as it had Caroline's then. It was a shadow, darker than the darkness of the hall.

"Jeremy? Jenna? Are you guys home?" Elena called.

She walked to the doorway, peering out in to the hall.

"This is super freaking creepy," Chastity whispered. "I hate this feeling I'm getting."

"Um…guys," Bonnie said suddenly.

I looked and saw her walking slowly in to the bathroom. She picked up what I assumed was the necklace before my view of her was cut off by the bathroom door slamming shut. I flinched before running up to try to open it. Elena came running back in to the room after hearing Bonnie's screams, begging us to open the door.

Chastity and I ran out to the door in the hallway while Caroline and Elena tried to open the door in her room. I even went to the door in Jeremy's room, trying my best to open it but it wouldn't budge. The lights started flickering and Elena started calling Bonnie's name louder, the panic in her voice increasing while Bonnie's screams increased.

I ran back to Elena's room with Chastity after giving up on Jeremy's door after Chastity had given up on the hallway door.

The lights stopped flickering as suddenly as Bonnie's screams had stopped. Elena and I looked at each other and the door unlocked, slowly opening to reveal Bonnie standing with her face in her hands.

"Bonnie?" I sighed walking up to her. "What happened? Are you okay?"

She brought her face up and looked at me.

"I'm fine," she replied stoically. I stared at her confused.

"Unbelievable," Caroline scoffed. "You were totally faking it."

I continued to stare at Bonnie. Something wasn't right…

"I'm fine," she assured me. "Everything's fine."

She glided past me and past Elena as I stared after her, dumbfounded. Something definitely wasn't right with her.

I walked to the stairs with Elena and Chastity behind Bonnie. Caroline continued complaining, expressing disbelief over how she fell for Bonnie's scared act. I didn't think it was an act at all. Bonnie was terrified and now she was too…calm.

"Bonnie…are you sure you're alright?" Elena asked.

"I must go," she replied shortly.

"She's leaving, I'm leaving," Caroline said.

"You guys can't leave," Elena protested.

"Oh, I can. I've had enough freaky fake witch stuff for one night," Caroline snapped.

"Okay whatever, no one cares," Chastity shot back. "Bye Caroline. Nice seeing you. Really."

"Thank you for having me," Bonnie spoke up politely. "I'll take it from here."

She began going down the stairs.

"Where are you going?" I asked.

"Back to where it all began," she replied without turning around.

Elena went to go after her, asking her to stay and that's when it came to me. The reason why Bonnie was acting so calm…she wasn't Bonnie. She was-

"Emily!" I called.

She turned and I heard Elena and Chastity gasp.

"I won't let him have it," she told us. "It must be destroyed."

She went out and I quickly ran down the rest of the stairs to go after her, hearing Elena and Chastity rush to follow too. I managed to make it outside before I heard the door slam shut, trapping my sister, Chastity, and Caroline in the house.

"Emily, wait!" I called after her.

She stopped halfway to the sidewalk and slowly turned.

"Tell him I am sorry," she said. "But I can't allow this to happen."

"Allow what to happen?" I questioned, still trying to catch my breath from the action.

"I must go now before it is too late."

She began walking away again just as quickly as she had before. Barely paying mind to Jeremy who was just getting home, I ran after her until I was at her side.

"Emily, what do you mean when you say you can't allow this to happen?" I asked.

"There is so much he has told you, yet so much he hasn't," she said. "I know you want to trust him, but you should not."

I knew she was talking about Damon, but I had no idea what she meant. I did want to trust him and I knew that I shouldn't, especially after all he's done. What was he still keeping from me though? What more could there possibly be to know?

* * *

We arrived at Fell's Church shortly after leaving the house. I wasn't surprised. This was where Emily brought Bonnie in her dreams.

"Hello Emily."

I jumped at Damon's sudden greeting while Emily stopped walking. When did he get here? How did he even know she was here? His icy eyes switched to me then.

"Sam. Pleasure as always," he smiled before it dropped when he looked back to Bon- Emily.

"You look different," he said to her.

"I won't let you do it," she told him.

"We had a deal," Damon reminded her.

I had no idea what was going on and as badly as I wanted to ask, I knew neither of them were going to answer me. Now I knew how Caroline felt before when she was left out of the conversation- ironically about this.

"Things are different now. I have to protect my family," Emily told Damon.

"I protected your family. You owe me," Damon said angry.

"I know," she said regrettably. "I'm sorry."

"You're about to be a lot more than that," he said before lunging at her.

"Damon, no!" I finally spoke up.

Emily was able to stop him, though, using magic. With a motion of her hand, he was flying back toward a tree where a branch impaled itself through his chest and left him pinned up against the tree. I gasped and my hands flew to cover my mouth in surprise. I shook myself out of it quickly and rushed toward him.

"Damon," I said, hating hearing and seeing him in pain.

I placed my hand on the branch and bit my lip. How was I supposed to get him out of this?

"Okay, just hold on," I whispered.

"Sam," he groaned.

"Sam!"

My head turned and I let out a sigh of relief when I saw Stefan running toward us.

"Stefan. Help him," I pleaded.

He ran up and freed his brother, pulling him away from the tree and releasing him from the branch.

"Oh that hurt," Damon groaned as soon as he was free. "This is why I feed on people."

Stefan pulled me back slightly at that comment, but I just rolled my eyes at Damon.

"Stefan," Emily greeted.

Stefan turned his attention to Emily, who was holding a tree branch. Stefan returned her greeting.

"Hello, Emily."

"These people don't deserve this," she told him. "They should never have to know such evil."

I furrowed my eyebrows and exchanged confused glances with Stefan.

"Evil? What do you mean evil?" I questioned.

"Emily! I swear to god I'll make you regret this!" Damon threatened, struggling to stand up.

"I won't let you unleash them into this world," Emily stood strongly.

"Them?" Stefan repeated.

"Them," I said. "Them who? What is going on?"

"What part of the story did you leave out, Damon?" Stefan asked his brother.

There was a whole story? Did Damon tell Stefan what he was doing in town and what he wanted with the crystal? Damon clearly left something out, if that's what happened. Then again, it shouldn't be a surprise.

"What does it matter?" Damon asked rhetorically.

"Emily tell me what you did," Stefan turned to Emily.

"To save her, I had to save them," she answered.

"You saved everyone in the church?" Stefan deduced in surprise.

"With one, comes all," she said.

I put it all together. The church…the church full of Union sympathizers this town set on fire in 1864. They weren't Union sympathizers, they were vampires. And Elizabeth and Katherine…Damon said they died in a fire. It was that fire, they burned in that church. At least, they were supposed to. Emily saved them and apparently saved everyone else with them.

"I don't care about that," Damon said almost desperately. "I just want Elizabeth."

Elizabeth. Staying in town, threatening Bonnie, trying to get the crystal…it was all so he could get Elizabeth back. Part of me admired how much he loved and was devoted to her and the other part of me was…hurt. I didn't know why nor did I think I had reason to be. I just…was.

"This is about revenge," Stefan said by the time I started paying attention again.

"The two aren't mutually exclusive," Damon said.

"Damon you can't do this!"

"Why not?!" Damon demanded. "They killed 27 people and they called it a war battle. They deserve whatever they get."

"27 vampires, Damon," Stefan stressed to him. "They were vampires. You can't just bring them back!"

"This town deserves this."

"You're blaming innocent people for something that happened 145 years ago!" I cut in.

Damon's wild eyes turned to me and oddly enough, I thought they softened a little when they did.

"There is nothing innocent about this town, Sam," he told me before he turned back to Stefan. "And don't think for a second it won't happen again! They already know too much and-"

He looked at Emily.

"-they'll burn your little grandwitch right next to us when they find out. Trust me," he warned her.

"Things are different now," Emily said calmly.

I noticed now that she had drawn what looked like a pentagram on the ground and was standing in the center of it.

"Emily, don't do this," Damon begged.

"I can't free them," she stated. "I won't."

She let the stick fall to the ground.

"Incendia!" she called.

Stefan pulled me behind him when the pentagram lit on fire. Damon continued to protest and plead with Emily, but she wasn't having any of it.

"Bonnie!"

My head snapped to my right where I saw Elena and Chastity both running toward the fire. I rushed toward them, but Stefan beat me to them and stopped them from getting too close. By the time I got to the trio, Emily was throwing the necklace up in the air where it exploded in to millions of pieces. The fire went out when all the pieces hit the ground and Bonnie's eyes closed before opening once more.

"Damon," I warned when I saw his face.

Before I could say anything else, he had lunged at Bonnie and bit in to her neck. She screamed and Stefan sped over to tear his brother off of her. Bonnie fell to the ground limply and I ran, slipping as I rushed and dropped to her side. I began searching her neck for a pulse, letting out a relieved breath when I felt one but it quickly turned to panic when I felt how faint it was.

"Stefan, she's barely alive," I breathed.

"I can save her," he told me.

He bit in to his wrist and fed her his blood, which she resisted at first but not for long. I watched in partial amazement and relief as Bonnie's neck wound closed up before I looked back at Damon, whose eyes were tearing up. Despite the fact that he had just tried to kill one of my best friends, I couldn't help feeling bad for him. All of the things he did…he just wanted Elizabeth back.

* * *

After comforting Bonnie and assuring her that we would explain everything to her, and after getting permission from Stefan to tell her, Elena got Bonnie in her car where Chastity was. Stefan decided he was still going to leave, despite Elena and I begging him not to. He still felt it was the safest and right thing to do. He said goodbye to the both of us and right after he did, I felt an emptiness inside of me. It hurt, but I could tell the pain was worse for Elena.

After Stefan was gone, I hugged Elena and told her to get Bonnie back to our house.

"What about you?" she asked.

"I…"

"Sam, no," she immediately said after getting the hint that I was staying to talk to Damon. "He just tried to kill Bonnie."

"I know but."

I closed my mouth and sighed.

"He needs someone right now," I told her. "Please…just trust me?"

She gave me a disapproving look, showing me she wasn't at all comfortable with the idea.

"I'm not leaving," she finally said after a moment. "I'll let you go to him though, but I'm not leaving you alone with him."

It wasn't exactly what I was looking for, but I accepted it. She got in the car and I began walking in the direction I saw Damon go in earlier. Eventually I found him sitting on a log, drinking away. He held up the bottle to me when he saw me.

"Come on," he said. "Let me have it."

"Have what?" I asked.

"Rip in to me for ripping in to Bonnie," he clarified.

I sat by him on the log and snatched the bourbon from him, looking him straight in the eye as I did so.

"I'm not here for that," I told him.

He gave me a look.

"Really?" he quizzed.

"No," I confirmed. "I mean, I do have a few choice words for you but…I won't say them."

"Why's that?" he asked sarcastically.

"Because you're hurt enough."

He fell in a stunned silence so I continued.

"I know…you loved Elizabeth," I said. "You must have really loved her if you were willing to go as far as you did and were going to just so you could have her back. I'm sorry you won't be getting her back."

He didn't say anything.

"God, I can't imagine how you must feel. Waiting 145 years only to have your last chance literally blow up in your face like that. I'm sorry, Damon. I really am. Just know…that…I'm here for you."

His eyes finally met mine, but I couldn't tell what he was thinking or feeling besides surprise and hurt. That was about it.

"I don't know if you're staying or leaving like Stefan, but if you are staying," I said as I stood up. "You have a friend."

I held the bottle back to him and he took it from me gently.

"Good night, Damon," I whispered.

I turned to go but before I could walk away, he caught my hand. I looked at him and he kissed my hand gently, rubbing his thumb lightly over my knuckles before he released my hand.

"Thank you," he said sincerely.

I gave him a small smile and nodded. I walked to Elena's car, feeling somewhat sadder than I did before. Damon was hurt, Stefan was leaving, Bonnie almost died…

This night was horrible. It wasn't as bad as the night Vicki died, but it was still bad. In spite of everything, though, I wanted Stefan to stay and I wanted Damon to stay. Stefan was my friend and Elena loved him and Damon…it was selfish, but I wanted him to stay for me.

He wouldn't though. Not after losing the chance to get Elizabeth back. He wouldn't want to stay in a town that reminded him of her. That's what made me sad and I didn't know why. I just was.


	10. The Turning Point

The next morning, Jenna was at the bottom of the stairs getting her things together when I came down.

"Morning Aunt Jenna," I greeted her.

She smiled at me.

"Morning kiddo," she greeted back.

"Jenna, Sam," Elena called. "Jeremy's got his sketch pad out."

"You're kidding," Jenna expressed in happy surprise while I just smiled.

Elena shook her head.

"Nope, but don't say a word. The minute we encourage him, he'll put it away," Elena pointed out.

"Psychology major. Check that," Jenna said.

We exchanged smiles before we both looked at Elena, who was looking down at her phone with a disappointed frown.

"You and Stefan?" Jenna asked walking toward her. "Update?"

Elena looked at me and I gave her a comforting smile. She really was heartbroken that Stefan was leaving, but there wasn't anything we could do.

"He knows how I feel and I know where he stands, but it doesn't matter," Elena sighed answering Jenna. "He's leaving, moving away."

"Where's he going?" Jenna asked almost outraged.

"I've stopped asking questions. The answers get scary," Elena answered.

We went outside and Jenna sighed.

"Yours leaves. Mine returns."

My face dropped and my eyes widened.

"Logan?" I asked surprised.

Logan. Logan Fell? The one Stefan told me Damon killed and Vicki fed off of in order to complete her transition, that Logan Fell?

"I didn't let him past the front door," Jenna went on as we walked out to the car.

"I hope you slammed it in his face," Elena put in.

That's right, Elena didn't know about Logan. I'd have to talk to her about it later. Maybe I should say something to Stefan and Damon too...

"Ah, medium slam," Jenna confessed regrettably. "Harder than I originally planned, he was being pushy. And he kept asking questions about where you were."

It took me a moment to realize she was talking to me.

"Me?" I asked with raised brows. "Why me?"

"No idea. It was weird," Jenna said. "He was like 'let me in' and then 'is Sam home? Will she be soon?'."

"That's freaky," Elena commented.

"No kidding."

"But you're done with him, right?" I asked.

Please be done with him.

"Three strike rule, Jenna. You're not even allowed to watch the news," Elena said.

Jenna nodded. "No. More. Logan Scumfell."

* * *

"When did Matt and Caroline start hanging out?" Chastity asked.

She was leaning against the locker next to mine while I dug for my history textbook. I glanced over to where she was looking and saw Matt and Caroline talking while walking in to a classroom.

"Oh, they started hanging out recently after Matt took her home when she was drunk," I explained. "I think it's great. Matt's a good guy and Caroline needs that. Caroline would be great for Matt too."

"I guess. Better than a homicidal vampire like Damon," she mumbled.

"Damon's…not so bad," I defended with a sigh. "Not to say what he did to Caroline is okay, but…"

"What's with you defending him?" Chastity asked with scrunched brows. "He nearly killed Bonnie. She wouldn't be alive if it weren't for Stefan- which she is so grateful for. And speaking of Stefan, is he still leaving town with Damon?"

I sighed deeply. "Yes. Elena and I can't ask him to stay any more because it would just be selfish and in the end, it's his decision anyway."

"That really sucks. There's really no convincing him to stay?"

I shook my head.

"Not anymore."

* * *

"Feel like helping a friend out?"

I gasped and jumped, turning quickly to see a smirking Damon standing a couple meters away from me.

"Uh, I'll see you all later," I said to the group of people I had been talking to.

I walked away from the picnic table they were sitting at and approached Damon, curious about why he was there.

"I thought you'd be leaving," I said as soon as I got to him.

"You want me gone bad, don't you?" he teased.

I gave him a look, but smiled.

"I'm glad you're still here and everything, but why?"

"Well, I need some help. Preferably from you," he replied. "So, I ask again. Feel like helping a friend out?"

* * *

"Anything yet?" Damon asked.

I was standing in front of the old warehouse with a device that used to be my brother's pocket watch. As Damon explained, there was a new vampire in town but he wasn't sure exactly where he was and that's where I came in.

This…whatever it was, was supposed to point toward vampires. Damon interfered with the signal, which was why he needed me to do it.

"It's pointing to the warehouse," I answered.

"Great," he said suddenly behind me.

I jumped and glared at him while he chuckled.

"You just enjoy that, don't you?"

"Very much so," he smirked.

He looked back at the warehouse and then glanced back at me, a thoughtful look on his face.

"What?" I asked him. "Aren't we going in?"

"You should probably wait in the car," he said. "We don't know how unhinged Logan Fell vampire style may be. He could be like me."

On the way here, after Damon explained the situation, I told him about the supposed to be dead Logan Fell coming over to the house to see Jenna and apparently ask about me. Damon deduced that he was the new vampire then.

"Like you?"

"Dangerous," he clarified. "Wouldn't want you in the line of fire."

"Damon Salvatore, are you implying that you don't want me getting hurt?"

"We're friends, right?" he asked with a smirk.

"Friends," I confirmed with a smile. "Just be careful. I wouldn't want _you _getting hurt. Even if he's younger than you, you never know what could happen."

He rolled his eyes but nodded and handed me his car keys. I took them and began walking back toward the car, but he caught my hand as I walked past him.

"Whatever you hear," he began. "Don't come inside."

There was no trace of humor in his eyes or any sign of the usual mischievous gleams. Nothing but seriousness and…worry.

I nodded and continued back to the car, feeling his eyes on me until I got in. Then it was my turn to watch him as he entered the warehouse.

Now to play the waiting game.

* * *

Okay, so I broke the not promise-promise to stay in the car. As soon as I heard gunshots, though, it was all instinct to get out of the car and come inside to make sure Damon was okay.

I went in as slowly and quietly as I could, hoping that I wouldn't be heard. Damon's groans of pain sounded through the building. I peeked around a wall of cardboard boxes and saw Damon on the ground. It took every fiber of my being to keep myself from running to him and helping him.

Logan stood in front of him talking about his bloodlust and all the people he's killed.

Damon subtly glanced around, catching my eye. I pressed my lips together guiltily in response to his 'what the hell are you doing' look and mouthed 'are you alright?' to him. He switched his eyes to the door before looking back to me urgently, a sign that he wanted me out now.

As Logan began talking again, I stealthily made my way toward the door.

"Why am I so overly emotional?" Logan asked Damon. "All I can think about is my ex-girlfriend. I wanna be with her and bite her and stuff."

I stumbled slightly, taken off guard by Logan's comment about who I knew had to be Jenna. He wanted to hurt her, that's why he was at the house last night. I had to keep Jenna away from him.

"Well, you probably love her," Damon told him. "Anything you felt before will be magnified now. You're gonna have to learn how to control that."

I continued making my way out quietly, but I was stopped once more by Logan speaking.

"What about her niece?"

My eyes widened and I peeked around the corner to where they were sitting. Logan looked confused while Damon seemed…angry.

"What about her?" he demanded.

"Sam's been on my mind since I caught a whiff of her on my jacket. So does that mean I love her or do I just want to suck every ounce of her delicious smelling blood from her body?"

Realization dawned on me. The jacket. The jacket that he gave me when Elena and I went to the news station with him to look up that story on Stefan's uncle. I all but served myself up on a platter for him, but better me than Elena or Jeremy.

I caught Damon's eye once more and he once again subtly looked to the doors, urging me stronger than before to get out of there before Logan discovered I was in there.

I took advantage of Logan talking and got to the door without making a sound. After I slipped out, I bolted to the car and got in. Even though it most likely wouldn't stop him if he found me, I locked the car doors and sank down in the seat, flinching when I heard another gunshot. Please, God, let Damon be okay.

* * *

**Third POV**

When Stefan heard Jenna say Logan Fell was at the career fair, he panicked a little. Logan Fell was dead, how was he there? Unless he was the new vampire in town…

"Hey Jenna, you dodging me?" Logan asked casually.

"It's a form of self preservation," she replied coldly.

"Ah. Well, what about your niece? I see Elena's here. What about Sam? She here too? I'd like to catch up with her, see how she's doing."

"Why do you keep asking about Sam?" Jenna asked.

"Elena, why don't you and Jenna go somewhere else," Stefan suggested.

Elena shot him a questioning look, which was replaced by realization when she saw Stefan's warning glance toward Logan. She was quick to lead Jenna away from the vampires then and Stefan turned back to Logan.

"What are you doin' here?" he asked him calmly.

"You know, your brother asked me the same thing," Logan sighed. "In fact, why don't we just skip past all that who-turned-me stuff and get to the answer I want: how can I turn in to a day walker?"

"Damon and I are the only two that I know of," Stefan replied in a stony manner, still not happy with Logan's obvious intentions to hurt Sam.

"But you're both very cagey on the how, which tells me that there is a way. You know, in case you hadn't noticed, I'm quite the celebrity in this town. It would be very, very easy for me to expose you," Logan threatened with a smirk.

Stefan smiled back a bit.

"You wanna know how you can walk around in the sun?" he asked.

"I do."

Stefan nodded.

"You can't," he said slowly.

Logan's smirk dropped.

"Don't ever threaten me again," Stefan warned. "And don't even think about going after Sam because I will kill you if you do."

With that, he left Logan standing in the hall to go outside and call Sam. He knew she was with Damon since she told him earlier and he wanted to make sure the both of them were okay.

* * *

**Sam's POV**

"I'll kill him," Damon gritted for the hundredth time as my phone started ringing.

After Logan left, Damon came back to the car and brought us to the boarding house so he could get cleaned up and change. I must have asked him if he was alright at least as many times as he said he was going to kill Logan.

I didn't reply and glanced at my screen, pressing answer as soon as I saw it was Stefan.

"Stefan, Logan Fell is a vampire," I warned right away. "That's why he kept trying to convince Jenna to let him in the house-"

"I know, are you alright?" Stefan asked worried.

"I'm fine, Damon's not."

"What happened?"

"I was shot and ambushed. Now I'm vengeful," Damon answered loudly. "I just gotta find him."

"No need, he's here at the school."

My eyes widened and I looked at Damon, who had stopped in the middle of changing his shirt.

"You're kidding me," Damon expressed in disbelief. "Why the hell is he there?"

"He's working the crowd. Looking for Sam too," Stefan said. "If you're coming here, fine, but I think it's best for Sam to stay behind."

"What? What about Jenna? And Elena and Jeremy, they're all there. They could-"

"I'm not going to let Logan hurt anyone tonight," Stefan assured me. "Especially not your family."

"Never thought I'd say this, but he's right. Logan made it abundantly clear tonight that he's after you, so the further we keep you away from him, the better," Damon added. "I'm going to take you home. He can't get in, so you'll be safe there."

I opened my mouth to protest again, but Stefan cut me off.

"I know sitting on the sidelines isn't exactly your thing, but it'll give us and your sister some peace of mind knowing you're safe," he convinced.

I sighed, slightly frustrated that I was being personally targeted and being dubbed unable to help, but accepted it. They were right. There wouldn't be much I could do anyway.

"Fine," I agreed.

Damon took my hand.

"We'll be careful," he assured me with a small smile.

"I heard that before," I mumbled.

* * *

Elena came home with Stefan and after Elena nearly suffocated me in a tight hug after seeing I was really alright, they caught me up on what happened.

In short, Logan attacked Caroline, but Stefan and Damon were able to catch up to them and now Caroline was safe and Damon was "dealing" with Logan.

I was glad everyone was okay, Caroline especially since she had come too close to Logan and could have died.

"I'm going to give Stefan a ride home," Elena told me. "Make sure you-"

"No unknown people are going to get in," I assured her.

I said my goodbyes to Stefan after making him promise it wasn't the last one. He assured me that he'd come say the final goodbye on his way out of town, even though it made me sad to know he was still leaving.

A bit after they left, Damon came over and asked if I wanted to hang out. I knew something was bothering him, so I went with him to the boarding house so he could talk to me about it.

"Logan said there was another way to get in," he told me on the road.

"To get in to the tomb?"

"Uh huh," he nodded. "Told me to meet him and he went and got himself killed. I let that dick live and that's how he repays me."

I watched him sympathetically. He really wanted to get in to that tomb and he was presented with more hope only to have it ripped away. A part of me was saddened by the fact that Logan Fell was dead too. He was…a manic killer, but I couldn't stop seeing him as the teenage boy who used to babysit my siblings and me with Jenna.

"Maybe we can figure it out," I suggested. "I mean you thought that the crystal was the only way in the tomb, but then Logan told you there was another one. Maybe we can find this other way."

"And that's why you and I are friends, Sam-I-am," he smirked.

He got another call from Sheriff Forbes a few minutes after we got to the boarding house, so he went to go to her office while I stayed at the boarding house. I was relaxing on the couch thinking about sending a message to Elena to let her know where I was, but I decided not to. She wouldn't like that I was hanging out with Damon even though I knew for a fact he wouldn't hurt me. He proved that when he kept me away from Logan.

Footsteps came thudding down the stairs shortly after Damon left, earning my attention. I went to go investigate, only to literally run in to my sister. She had a face full of absolute confusion, hurt, and some panic- all of which only grew when she saw me.

"Sam? What are you doing here?" she demanded.

"I- erm…I was talking to Damon," I admitted in defeat. "What's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"Where's Damon?" she asked looking around.

"He left, he got- what are you doing?" I asked.

She had seized my hand and literally ran with me out of the house and practically strapped me in to her car. She ran around to the driver's side and peeled out of the driveway, speeding down the road away from the boarding house.

"Okay, Elena, what the hell is going on?" I asked. "What was that? Why are you acting like this?"

"We look like them," she cried.

I scrunched my eyebrows together.

"What are you talking about? We look like who?"

"Katherine and Elizabeth. We look exactly like them- as in we could be twins."

We look like…Katherine and Elizabeth? What? How was that possible? We…looked like them.

It was the last thought that ran through my head before the car crashed in to something and tumbled in the street. The last thing I felt was a blunt pain on the back of my head. After that, I blacked out.


	11. Bloodlines

My fave song from this episode: Cosmic Love by Florence + the Machine.

* * *

The low humming and light vibration of a car was the sound and feeling I woke up to. I groaned lightly, my eyes being slightly burned at the light seeping in to my eyes as my eyes fluttered open slowly.

The unfamiliar countryside surroundings woke me right up and I straightened up in the seat I was in.

"What the-" I began, confused.

"Morning sunshine."

I knew that chipper voice. I looked to my left and sure enough, there was Damon looking back at me with a smirk. He looked back to the road while I looked around.

"Where are we?" I asked. "Oh my- where's Elena?! Is she okay? What happened?"

"One question at a time, cute stuff," he said nonchalantly.

My cheeks warmed when he called me cute, but the thought of Elizabeth and Katherine did well to get rid of that blush. Wait…Elizabeth and…Katherine.

"To answer your first question, we're in Georgia," Damon said.

"Georgia?" I repeated in shock. "Damon, seriously. Where are we?"

"Seriously. We're- we're in Georgia."

I stared at his face, hoping to see a crack of a smile or some other sign to tell me he was joking.

"Why are we in Georgia?" I asked after getting no sign of kidding around.

"Thought it'd be fun," he said simply with a shrug. "Road trip and all. How are you feeling by the way?"

I could tell by his tone that he was trying not to seem too concerned, but his face gave him away. The side glances he had been sending my way were telling me he actually cared about whether I was okay or not. Then again, maybe it was wishful thinking that he'd care.

"I'm fine," I answered. "But…I have no idea what happened. Where is Elena? Is she okay?"

"Well, you really are fine for starters. No broken bones, I checked, and I gave you some blood to heal your head up. As for your sister, she's fine too. Stefan's taking care of her."

That fact calmed me down. Elena was safe with Stefan, I trusted him.

"What happened?"

He told me about finding Elena's car upside down in the middle of the road after she hit a man- who was able to get up and get away from the scene. I was unconscious but Elena wasn't, so he got her out first before he saved me from the wreckage. After that, Stefan came and took her back to the boarding house while Damon took me…to Georgia.

A sick feeling manifested in my stomach and I leaned my head back on the seat. Jenna and Jeremy had no idea what happened, Elena didn't know where I was, and apparently Stefan was expecting us back at the boarding house. On top of that, a man that my sister hit with her car was able to just get up and walk away- a clear sign that he was a vampire- and we had no clue who he was or what he wanted.

"Thank you for saving Elena. And me," I said gratefully after the feeling went away. "But…I can't be here. I have to get home. Elena will be worried and Jenna will be too-"

I cut myself when I felt a sudden wave of dizziness. Damon noticed and immediately pulled the car over to the side of the road, rushing over to my side of the car after he stopped.

"You alright?" he asked concerned after I pushed open my door.

I let out a sigh of relief at the feel of the fresh breeze on my face and nodded. I tried standing, but that only ended up in me stumbling right in to his expectant arms.

"Hey there," he said to me, all joking and teasing gone from his face. He looked so worried and it made me feel terrible for making him feel this way.

"I'm fine," I assured him. "Just a little nausea. I'll be okay."

He relaxed slightly, but I could tell he was still a bit concerned.

"Alright," he said. "Let's get back on the road."

"Damon, I can't," I told him. "I have to go back."

"Oh come on," he groaned. "We've already come this far."

"Elena and I were in a wreck," I reminded him. "I have to go home, she's gonna wonder where I am and she's going to know you kidnapped me."

"That's a little melodramatic, don't you think?"

I gave him a look, silently telling him he wasn't funny.

"I can't go to Georgia," I rephrased.

"Too late," he whispered.

"Damon-"

"You may have your little magical necklace, but I could take it and easily make you…agreeable," he interrupted with a smirk.

"You wouldn't," I said confidently. "You would never do that to me."

Before he could reply, a phone started ringing. My phone, to be exact. I gaped at Damon.

"You took my phone?" I questioned with disbelief as he took it out of his jacket pocket. His trademark smirk was his only reply before he glanced at the screen.

"It's your sister's boyfriend," he sang. "I'll take it."

All I could do was stare as he answered my phone.

* * *

**Third POV**

"Sam's phone," Damon answered pleasantly, while she continued to stare at him.

"Where is she?" Stefan immediately asked his brother while Elena stared at Stefan with wide eyes. Why hadn't her sister answered her phone? "Is she alright?"

"Sam? She's right here. And yes, she's fine," Damon replied, looking over at Sam as he emphasized "fine".

"Where are you? Let me speak to her," Stefan demanded, suspicious of his brother having Sam.

Elena sat on Stefan's bed, worry etched on her face. Damon may have said she was alright, but Elena didn't trust Damon at all. Especially not with her younger sister.

Damon held the cellphone out to Sam.

"He wants to speak to you," he told her.

She took the phone with no hesitation, holding it up to her ear.

"Stefan?" she said.

"Sam," he sighed with relief, immediately making Elena stand up and rush to his side.

"Sam!" she said. "Where are you? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. Damon took care of me," Sam replied calmly, eyes sliding over to Damon who seemed surprised she gave him credit.

"Well where are you? Damon should have brought you back here last night," Elena said, caught up on the events from the night before thanks to Stefan.

"I-"

"Ah, ah, ah," Damon interrupted taking the phone from her hand. "Don't you worry, big sis, I'll bring her back in time for dinner, safe and sound."

"Damon, I swear to God if you touch her, I'll-"

"You have a good day now," Damon cut off his little brother's threat. "Mm-hmm. Bye now."

Damon hung up on Stefan and smirked at Sam before sliding her phone back in his jacket pocket.

Back in Mystic Falls, Stefan threw his phone against the wall, making Elena jump back from him. He looked at her with apologetic eyes.

"I'm sorry," he said sincerely. She shook her head.

"We have to find them," she said. "I don't trust Damon with her."

Stefan didn't say anything, but silently agreed. He hated to think about the things Damon could do to Sam and the more scenarios that ran through his head, the more determined he became to find her.

* * *

**Sam's POV**

"You know even if I told them we were in Georgia, they still would have had trouble finding us," I pointed out to Damon. "I don't even know exactly where we are or where we're going"

"It's just a little place outside of Atlanta," he said.

"I have to go back," I said. "Elena, Jenna, and Jeremy-"

"Will be fine. Elena knows where you are. Kind of. As for your other problems, they'll still be there when you go home so what's the rush? Just take a time-out."

I took a deep breath and looked up at the sky. I wanted to physically see that my sister was alright. I wanted her to see that I was alright. Besides that, I also wanted to know exactly what she was talking about when she said that we looked like Katherine and Elizabeth.

Then again…I didn't want to know.

So with great reluctance I looked back to Damon.

"I'm safe with you, right?" I asked.

"Yes," he answered sincerely.

"You won't compel me."

"I never would, you said so yourself."

"Let's go then."

* * *

"So the man Elena hit was a vampire, right?" I asked Damon a while later.

"From what I could tell, yeah," he replied unhappily as he drove.

"And he wasn't someone you met before?"

"Nope," Damon answered. "Someone entirely new to the Mystic Falls scene as far as I know."

I bit my lip. Great. Another vampire in Mystic Falls who could possibly be out to hurt the people I care about.

Not too long after, Damon pulled us in front of a beige brick building labeled "Bree's Bar".

"A bar?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.

Damon got out of the car and I followed, running to his side.

"I'm not old enough. They're not going to let me in, you know," I pointed out to him.

"Sure they will," he winked.

I eyed him suspiciously for a moment. No way we drove all the way to Georgia just for him to bring me to a bar. There had to be another reason why we were here.

We entered the building, so far without a hitch. Behind the bar wiping down the counters was a beautiful woman in her late thirties with free, tight black curls and mocha skin. Her dark eyes lifted and widened when she saw Damon.

"No. No, it can't be," she said. "Damon."

She swung her legs over the bar excitedly and approached Damon, both had large smirks on their faces. When she stopped in front of him, I could clearly see that she towered over Damon.

"My honey pie," she sighed.

My eyes widened when she grabbed his face and placed a large showy kiss on his lips, which he returned. A feeling went through me when they kissed. A feeling I feared was jealousy.

* * *

"Listen up everybody!" Bree called out later after Damon and I got settled at the bar.

She began pouring shots of tequila. "Here's to the man that broke my heart, crushed my soul, destroyed my life, and ruined any and all chances of happiness."

She placed a shot in front of Damon and I both, holding one for herself.

"Drink up!" she said, tossing hers back at the same time as Damon.

I…probably shouldn't do that. Damon took my shot and downed it, placing the glass back in front of me before Bree turned back to us.

"So, how'd he rope you in?" she asked me as she poured us more shots.

"I'm not roped in. My sister is dating his brother," I told her.

"Honey, if you're not roped, you're whipped. Either way, just enjoy the ride," she told me with knowing smile.

I cleared my throat awkwardly before changing the subject.

"So how did you two meet?" I asked her curiously.

The two shared a look and she laughed before answering.

"College."

I looked at Damon surprised.

"College?" I asked with a small smile. "You went to college?"

"I've been on a college campus, yes," he said before downing another shot.

"About twenty years ago when I was a sweet, young freshman, I met this beautiful man and I fell in love. And then he told me about his little secret, made me love him even more."

So she knew Damon was a vampire. That would explain why she wasn't confused by his lack of aging considering they met twenty years ago…

"Because you see, I had a secret of my own that I was dying to share with somebody," she continued.

Damon leaned over to me and whispered. "She's a witch."

I smiled. She was a witch like Bonnie and Chastity? Pretty amazing.

"Changed my world, you know," she said to him.

"I rocked your world," Damon stated.

She giggled, lifting another shot to her lips.

"He is good in the sack, isn't he?" she asked me.

I blushed a bit at her assumption that Damon and I have slept together.

"But mostly, he's just a walkaway-Joe," she said almost sadly before throwing back her shot.

I glanced over at Damon, who seemed to have some remorse though he was still smiling. At least I hoped it was remorse. Poor Bree didn't deserve to have her heart broken, no one did.

"So, what is it that you want?" she asked Damon.

* * *

Later, I stepped outside after Damon gave me back my phone to let me call Jenna to at least reassure her that I was alive still.

"Where are you? " she asked immediately. "Elena said that you slept over at Chastity's last night? Why didn't you call?"

So Elena lied to Jenna? I guess she didn't want her to know about the accident until she could think of exactly what to say.

"I'm sorry," I apologized. "I was just so tired last night that I fell asleep and her house and this morning we woke up late so we got to school right away."

"Are you okay?" she asked me. "Elena seemed like something was wrong with her this morning."

So Elena slept over at Stefan's and made it home this morning in time to tell Jenna something, but Jenna could tell something was bothering her. I bet I knew what it was.

"I'm okay. And Elena just has Stefan drama and stuff," I said.

"Still, huh?" she asked. "Well…both of you need to at least shoot me a text if you're going to spend the night somewhere else. I was really worried about you."

"I know, I really am sorry for worrying you," I said. "But we're both fine. I have to get back to class, but I'll talk to you later."

"Alright, sweetie. Bye."

"Bye."

I sighed after I hung up the phone. I hated lying. It made a sick feeling rise up in my stomach. That feeling intensified whenever I lied to a loved one. But Elena thought keeping Jenna and Jeremy out of vampire business would be for the best.

Why didn't I agree with her?

* * *

Just before I started to go back inside, my phone rang. I looked at caller ID. Stefan.

"Hello," I answered.

"Sam," he sighed. "Where are you?"

I glanced back at the building. I wanted to know why Damon brought us here. Plus I had a few questions I needed to ask that I wasn't sure Stefan could give me.

"I'm safe," I told him. "Just tell Elena that."

"It's not just Elena, Sam, I want to know where you are too," he said. "I don't trust Damon with you."

"You should give Damon more credit, Stefan. He would never hurt me," I said.

"Sam-"

"How are Elena and I connected to Katherine and Elizabeth?" I tested.

"I honestly don't know," he said.

I nodded, believing him.

"Okay," I said. "Look, I'm fine. I'll be fine. Damon hasn't compelled me, he can't. I'll be back soon, tell Elena not to worry."

"Sam-"

"Please Stefan."

He sighed and I could tell he was struggling with not tracking me down to come get me.

"Okay," he finally caved. "Just…please be careful. Stay safe."

"I will. Thank you, Stefan."

"I'll see you when you get back."

"Of course," I smiled. "Bye Stefan."

"Bye."

I hung up, sliding my phone back in my pocket before turning right in to Damon.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Fine," I nodded. "Calmed Stefan down a little."

"Well," he said. "You got him to back down, but he's not going to stop worrying until you're back and away from me, you know."

"I know," I said.

He looked at me with narrowed eyes.

"Why didn't you tell him where we were?" he asked.

"Because you have something you want from Bree," I said knowingly.

I had put two and two together. Bree was a witch, we drove all the way here to her bar. He wanted something from her.

He clapped twice.

"Smart," he said. "And why else?"

He had been listening. He heard the question I asked Stefan.

"Because I thought you'd know more than Stefan about why Elena and I look like Katherine and Elizabeth," I said.

He smiled.

"Maybe I'll share what I know. After I get what I want," he conditioned. "Shall we go back?"

"Let's go."

* * *

Damon and I sat at the bar eating the burgers and fries he ordered for us. I picked up one of my fries and spoke.

"Let's just say that my sister and I are descended from Katherine and Elizabeth," I started. "Does that make us…part vampire or something?"

Damon shook his head as he finished chewing.

"Vampires can't procreate," he answered. "But we love to try."

I rolled my eyes at his suggestive smirk and gave him a look.

"No," he said. "If you and Elena are related to them, it would mean that one or both of them had a child before they turned."

"Which one looks like which?" I asked then.

"Well, Elena looks exactly like Katherine. You are Elizabeth's copy."

My heart hammered when I thought back to the way Damon talked about Elizabeth before and how beautiful she was. Did he think I was beautiful too? Wait…Elizabeth was the one he wanted to get back. He was in love with someone who looked exactly like me…

I cleared my throat.

"That's not why Stefan is dating Elena, though," I said. "Right? He doesn't think he can replace Katherine with her."

"It's kind of creepy if you ask me," he said. "Especially considering he was head over heels for Elizabeth."

I shook my head.

"Come on, what? You don't like pickles? What's wrong with you?" he asked.

"I'm saving them for last, don't touch them," I said, stopping him from reaching for them. "But what you just said proves he can't be using Elena. If he was in love with Elizabeth and he wanted to replace her…then he'd be dating me, not Elena."

"Unless he settled for replacing Katherine since he saw her first and by then it was too late to go for you."

"We met on the same day. He has a connection with Elena," I insisted. "Look, I know my sister and I know she'll have trouble seeing it, but I believe Stefan truly loves her and not because she looks like Katherine."

He tossed a fry in his mouth.

"If you say so," he sang, munching on another fry.

I watched him.

"How can you eat?" I asked him. "Help me out here, all I have to go on is Twilight and those vampires can't digest food. In fact, it tastes like dirt to them."

"I wouldn't have taken you for a Twilight fan."

"Moment of weakness. If you're supposed to be…dead…how can you eat?"

"As long as I keep a healthy diet of-" he paused, obviously for dramatic effect. "-_blood_ in my system, my body functions pretty normally."

I nodded before picking up my burger.

"You know when I tell Elena how nice you were to me today, she'll never believe it," I told him. "She never does."

He smirked and I took a bite out of my burger.

"Here you go, hun," Bree said setting another beer in front of Damon before taking away his empty bottle. "You sure you don't want one?"

"Oh no," I shook my head. "I don't drink."

"That's crazy," Damon said. "Who doesn't drink?"

"Tiny people with low tolerance," I said blankly. "One beer has the potential to knock me on my ass."

"I would actually like to see that," he smirked.

I pursed my lips at him before thinking. We did agree that I would take a time-out today. So far, I was stepping outside of my life spending time in Georgia- which I would never usually do, skipping school- also a thing I wouldn't do, and hanging out at a bar- another thing I would never usually do. So why not add one more thing I wouldn't usually do to the list of things I've done today?

"Okay," I said. "I'll have one."

Bree looked at me in surprise before smiling and handing me a beer of my own.

"Atta girl," Damon grinned, clinking his bottle with mine.

This won't end well, I know it. But I didn't exactly care at the moment.

* * *

I danced victoriously as I slammed my shot glass down after I finished my shot before everyone else at the bar- including Damon- yet again.

"That's 3!" I cheered, looking at Damon. "I'm a lot better at this whole drinking thing than I thought."

"Learn something new everyday," Damon smirked.

I giggled and looked around.

"All right, who's next?" I asked.

I knew it was probably a bad idea to continue down this path, but a more dominant part of me wanted to keep going.

"Honey, you should be on the floor," a blonde woman with pink cheeks next to me said.

"I am not even drunk. My tolerance is like way up here," I said jumping up to show her just how high up it was.

"You're so small though," she said.

"Tiny but mighty," I grinned.

* * *

The guy I was playing pool with- I know his name, trust me- swore loudly after his missed his shot. I laughed and leaned forward to take my shot when my phone rang, slightly bringing me out of my drunken high.

I jogged to my jacket, struggling to take my phone out of my pocket. When I finally got it out, I answered.

"Hello?" I said in to the receiver.

"Samantha?"

Crap, Aunt Jenna. She even used my full name? I'm in trouble.

I started yanking my jacket back on as I headed outside to hear her better.

"Jenna!" I greeted. "Hi!"

"Where are you? Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," I assured her, feeling guilty for making her worry. How long had it been since I last spoke to her? Or Elena and Stefan for that matter?

"It's not fine," she argued. "I got a call-"

I tripped over my own feet, dropping my phone in the process, and landed on my hands and knees. I groaned at myself and hurriedly picked my phone back up. Elena must have told her about the crash because she ran out of excuses for me. I felt terrible for putting her in a position like that. What kind of sister and niece was I?

I picked myself back up, ready to confess to Jenna where I really was, when an arm wrapped around me from behind and a hand covered my mouth and muffled my screams. More fear set in when I realized it was a vampire holding me after I was sped away at a speed no human would be able to move at.

Who was this person? Was I about to be dinner? And where is Damon?

* * *

**Third POV**

Damon returned to the bar with a sigh. It was dark out already and he knew that he needed to get Sam back to Mystic Falls before her sister and his brother had bigger hissy fits than they'd already been having.

"Hey, where's your girl?" Bree asked.

Damon frowned and looked around, not noticing the look on Bree's face as he did. His gorgeous companion was no where to be seen, not even by the pool table where he last saw her.

His eyes narrowed and he immediately got up from the bar without saying a word as a slight panic overtook him. Something wasn't right. Not even drunk Sam would take off on him like this.

He stepped outside, eyes searching wildly for her. Where was she?…

His eyes spotted her phone on the ground and a sick feeling settled in the pit of his stomach.

"No," he muttered to himself.

He snatched up her phone and glanced all around him. Sam…

He walked around the building quickly, determined to find her and possibly end the life of whoever took her. He came across an electrical building where he saw Sam on the ladder of a storage tank.

"Damon, no!" she warned him.

Before he could get a word out, he caught sight of a blur heading straight for him and a sudden pain in the back of his legs knocked him down.

Great, so his enemies were already starting to figure out they could use Sam for bait.

* * *

**Sam POV**

I climbed down the ladder, running toward Damon and the vampire attacking him with the metal bat.

The other vampire let up and went off somewhere, but I knew he'd be back. Damon glared in the direction he went in.

"What the hell?!" he spat. "Sam, get out of here!"

"I'm not leaving you!"

True there wasn't anything I could do, but I didn't want to leave Damon with this guy. Who knows what he would do?

The other vampire returned quickly with a container of gasoline. He wasted no time before he began dumping it on Damon.

"No!" I panicked, running toward them.

He glared back at me, fangs out and veins popped. I stopped in my tracks. He turned back to Damon.

"Who are you?" Damon demanded.

"That's perfect. You have no idea," the guy scoffed.

"What did he do?" I asked. "What could he have possibly done to you?"

"He killed my girlfriend," he spat.

My eyes widened as realization set in. Damon killed his girlfriend? Who was his girlfriend?

"What did she do to you, huh? What did she do to you?!" the vampire raged as he continued pouring gas on Damon.

"Nothing," Damon replied, a little guiltily.

That guilt was familiar…

"Lexi," I whispered. "Lexi was your girlfriend? She told me about you. You turned so you two could be together forever."

It was romantic. Very romantic, but short-lived.

He took out his lighter, his eyes glistening with tears that made my heart break.

"Wait," I begged. "Lexi- she loved you! I didn't know her long, but I know she was good. Which means that you must be good too, so you're better than this- better than him!"

"I'm doing you a favor," he hissed.

He lit the lighter, letting Damon watch the flame almost tauntingly.

"Please, don't hurt him," I begged softly. "Please, don't do this. Be better than this. Be better for her."

Lexi didn't deserve to die, but neither did Damon. He was good, I knew that. Beneath it all, there was good in him. Just like there was in this guy.

His hand shook, like he wanted to drop the lighter but was fighting with himself not to do it. He looked over his shoulder at me with his tortured eyes before he sighed and let the flame go out. I sighed in relief when his shoulders slumped, but tensed once more as he picked the weakened Damon up and threw him in to the building across from him.

I winced when Damon landed, but felt relief that he was alright. Alive, at least.

"She'd be proud of you," I said to Lexi's boyfriend. "She'd be proud of you for being strong."

He looked at me tearfully and nodded once before speeding away. I didn't waste any time before running to Damon's side to make sure he was alright.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

"Been through worse," he groaned. "Am I still pretty?"

I laughed in relief. At least he was still Damon.

* * *

**Third POV**

Lee ran to his car, tears still soaking in his eyes. He came here tonight with the purpose of killing his girlfriend's killer, but that girl got to him. He was annoyed when she stopped him, but she was right. Lexi wouldn't have wanted him to get lost in vengeance. She had a pure heart, just like that girl.

He leaned his head forward on his car and sighed. At least he got to kick the crap out of that guy first.

"You should consider yourself lucky," a voice behind him said.

He jumped, whirling around defensively with the metal bat in hand. Standing across from him was a calm looking man with his hands folded in front of him.

"Who the hell are you?" he demanded. How did this guy sneak up on him?

"Although you did us the girl to lure Damon Salvatore out, you didn't harm her," the guy said, ignoring his demand. "Which warrants you a quick death, but a death nonetheless."

"What are you talking about?" Lee asked. "What does it matter to you?"

"My orders are clear," the guy replied. "There are no exceptions."

Without further explanation, he sped forward and ripped Lee's heart of his chest.

* * *

**Sam POV**

Shortly after Damon recovered from his attack and he said goodbye to Bree, we were on the road back to Mystic Falls. I asked Damon again why he brought me along with him and got an actual answer. Turns out, I'm fun to be with and he wanted to save me and piss Stefan and Elena off, which I'm sure he did.

When we got back to town, we went straight back to the boarding house where I knew Elena and Stefan would be. I found them upstairs, talking closely. As soon as she saw me, Elena stood up and pulled me in to her arms.

"Where have you been?" she asked. "Are you alright? Why haven't you called? I had to tell Jenna that I wasn't sure where you were because the school called and said you weren't there and-"

"Elena," I cut in. "I'm okay, it's okay. I don't blame you for telling Jenna, frankly I may have done the same thing. I know you were worried about me and I'm sorry, but-"

"Don't," she said. "It's okay, I know you didn't have much of a choice. I just need to keep in mind you were with Damon. Did he hurt you at all?"

"No," I instantly said. "No, he didn't hurt me."

She eyed me up and down. After she seemed to be assured that I wasn't hurt, she let out a small sigh and hugged me tightly again.

"Don't even disappear on us like that again."

"Sorry."

Stefan stepped over and I hugged him briefly.

"I'm glad to see you're alright," he said.

"You should really give your brother more credit," I said lightly. "He'd never hurt me."

Silence fell over and I knew it was because what I said. Though I trusted him, I knew Stefan and Elena didn't. That was alright. Over time they would see.

I cleared my throat and put thumbs in my pack pockets.

"So…you two seem to have worked things out," I noticed.

"Yeah, uh…we did a lot of talking while you were gone," Elena said. "Found some things out."

I furrowed my eyebrows.

"Like what?" I asked looking between the two.

They exchanged glances and Elena stepped forward slightly.

"Well…Stefan was the one who saved me from the accident," she began.

My heart stopped and I looked at Stefan.

"You were there?" I asked him.

"I was here to see Zach," he explained. "I was out in the woods when I heard the accident. I didn't get there fast enough- the car was already completely in the water by the time I got there. Your dad was still conscious. I could have saved him, but he refused to let me until I saved Elena."

I let out a shaky breath in shock as tears blurred my vision.

"You saved my sister's life?" I repeated. My father…sacrificed himself to save Elena. To let Stefan save Elena.

Silent tears slipped down Elena's face as Stefan nodded.

"I went back for your parents, but…it was already too late."

I stepped forward quickly and wrapped my arms around Stefan, crying harder than I had been a second ago.

"Thank you," I said thickly. "Thank you for saving my sister."

"I'm sorry for not telling you earlier," he said. "That was the first time I saw Elena- the first time I saw that she looked like Katherine. The first time I met you was at school on the first day, I had no idea who you were. I actually thought you were Elizabeth. I wanted to tell you both but…I didn't want to drop it on you. I'm so sorry, Sam."

I shook my head and pulled away from him.

"It's okay," I assured him. "It's okay. You have nothing to apologize for. I understand. But…I don't get it."

"Get what?" Elena asked.

There seemed to be a hint of dread in her voice, like she didn't want me asking whatever I knew she knew I was going to ask.

"Why the resemblance?" I asked. "How do we look exactly like them?"

"It's not important-"

"You've already been through so much."

"Please," I begged them both. "I want to- I have to know."

Stefan hesitated, looking at Elena. She shook her head at him and opened her mouth.

"We did some digging," she began. "It didn't make sense because our last name is Gilbert and theirs was Pierce. The resemblance was too strong for it to be coincidence. And then…we found the truth."

"Which is?" I pressed patiently.

Elena sighed.

"We were adopted, Sam."

* * *

Walking up to the house, my mind was in a haze. I was adopted. Elena was adopted. We were most likely descended from Katherine and Elizabeth somehow…

Stefan and Elena found our birth records. We had birth certificates with our names- Elena Gilbert and Samantha Gilbert- and birthdays on them from Mystic Falls General. However, they couldn't find any records of Miranda Gilbert ever being admitted for either of our births or even her being pregnant with us.

Elena wanted to look more, but as Stefan said it was too risky for him to go asking around about Katherine and the Pierce family.

"I don't set a lot of rules, girls. Not with you two. I trust you both to tell me the truth: where were you? Why would you lie to me about it? I thought we were closer than that?"

I blinked once and looked up, realizing now that we were inside the house. Jenna was standing in the living room, looking at us expectantly.

"Now is not the time to talk to us about lies," Elena countered.

"Don't do that, don't turn this back on me," Jenna said. "I didn't do anything."

"Okay question," Elena started.

"Are Elena and I adopted?" I asked before I could stop myself.

Jenna's face morphed from anger to shock and guilt.

"We trust you to tell us the truth too, Jenna," Elena said. "How could you not tell us? I thought we were closer than that."

Elena started up the stairs while I stayed where I was, watching Jenna and waiting for her explanation.

"Elena, Sam, I didn't- they asked me not to," she said regretfully.

"I don't want to hear it!" Elena said going straight to her room.

The door slammed and Jenna shut her eyes. She looked back at me desperately.

"I am so sorry, Sam," she said. "I didn't think I'd have to be the one- they asked me not to say anything to you before…"

I took a deep breath and swallowed my pain. As hard as it was for Elena and me to find out we were adopted, it must have been harder for Jenna to find a way to tell us. Especially when she didn't think she'd have to be the one to do it.

"It's okay," I whispered. "Jenna, it's…I just…I need time."

She nodded sadly as I made my way up the stairs to my own room. I shut the door behind me softly before walking over to my bed, where I sat down slowly. Some couple of days these have been.

* * *

So Sam has got herself a mysterious protector! Who is he and why is he protecting her?

All shall be revealed...eventually!

I want to thank you all for sticking around while I get my groove back. You are some awesome, devoted fans and you are the reason I come back. Thanks a bunch and I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I hope you will enjoy the ones yet to come.


	12. Unpleasantville

To make up for me being gone for so long, I present to you: two chapters in one day! Enjoy!

BTW Sam's dress link is on my profile.

Fave Song from this episode: Now That We've Grown by St Leonards

* * *

I stared down at the picture of…well myself. Kind of. This woman was an exact replica of me in every sense. If I didn't know any better, I would have thought it was a historically themed picture of me.

I did know better, though, and I knew that she wasn't me. This was Elizabeth.

My eyes switched over to the other, equally aged photograph of Katherine who even I could have mistaken for Elena. The only physical difference between all of us was that Katherine and Elizabeth had curly hair while Elena's was pin straight and mine was loosely wavy.

"You okay?"

I looked over at Stefan, who was standing at the entrance of my room. He came over to talk to Elena and brought over some extra vervain and vervain jewelry for us to give to Jenna, Jeremy, and our other friends. He also brought over the pictures of Katherine and Elizabeth at my insistence. I just had to see for myself how much of a resemblance there was between us all.

Needless to say, Elena was right. They were replicas of us. Or we were replicas of them.

"I'm fine," I answered Stefan's question.

I held the pictures out to him with a sigh.

"You can take these back," I told him. "I just…needed to see with my own eyes."

He stepped forward and took the pictures gently from my fingers, watching me with concerned eyes.

"You know whatever you're feeling, whatever you're thinking…you can talk to me about it, right?"

I nodded right away.

"I know," I said. "Guess I just…need to figure out what it is I'm feeling and thinking first."

"That's understandable," he said. "Well when you do figure it out, you can come to me."

"Thanks."

* * *

"Elena, I need the money!" Jeremy called up the stairs.

"Will you take him the money for me, Sam?!" Elena asked from the bathroom.

I set my book down on my bed and grabbed the money Elena had set out in her room for the pizza. I came downstairs, greeting the pizza guy just as he set the pizza down on the table by the front door.

"Here you are," I said holding the cash out to him. "Keep the change."

He smiled as he took the money from me.

"Thanks a lot," he said. "You have yourself a good night."

"You too," I returned with a smile.

He backed out of the house with a smile and though I tried not to think anything of it, it sent a bit of a chill down my spine. I closed the door and shook it off. I was probably just being paranoid.

* * *

"This has to be the most beautiful thing ever!" Olivia sang as she admired the bracelet I gave her. "I don't know why you're giving it to me, but thanks!"

"It's a just because you're an awesome person, Liv," Chastity said dryly. "Even though you really don't need it."

I gave her a weird look, to which she just nodded at Olivia.

"You can never have too many accessories," Olivia stated. "Thanks a lot Sam."

She gave me a one-armed hug before bouncing away to a group of girls, immediately showing off the silver charmed bracelet full of vervain I had given her.

"She really doesn't need it," Chastity said. "And I don't need mine."

"You don't need them?" I questioned.

"No, witches can't be compelled," she told me.

I nodded.

"Right," I said. "The witch thing. Good. That's good, especially with the new guy in town."

"Hey, he won't get to you," she assured me. "You're safe."

"It's not me I'm worried about," I sighed. "I just don't want him hurting anyone else. That's why I'm glad Stefan gave us the vervain."

"Part of the perks of being a witch: there's no need to take up vervain. We're naturally un-compellable."

"Well, Jeremy has one, Caroline has one, and we've got Jenna covered. There was extra so now you and Olivia have one too," I said thoughtfully. Maybe we should get some to Matt and Tyler too…and Adam…

As if she read my mind when his name came up, Chastity started talking.

"So I saw Adam talking to a girl the other day," she said. "I think he's finally getting the hint that he's not getting another chance with you."

"That's good. It's good he's moving on," I said sincerely.

Chastity stopped walking and gave me a look.

"Are you kidding me? He cheats on you and you're happy he's moving on to someone else before you?"

"I didn't say that," I defended.

"You may as well have," she groaned. "What about Damon? No never mind, stay away from him. We'll hook you up with someone good-"

"Chas, you don't have to do that," I said. "Seriously, I'm okay with not being anyone right now. In fact, I'm actually kind of glad. With everything that I've found out, I really need some time to…get my thoughts together."

"Right, you just found out you were freaking adopted," she said. "What did Jeremy say?"

I shook my head.

"Nothing," I said. "Elena didn't want to say anything to him about our adoptions until we found out a little more. Besides, as it is it's not exactly safe to tell Jeremy that we're related to vampires."

"You have point," Chastity agreed. "Well, remember whatever you need, I'm here for ya."

"Thanks Chas," I smiled.

She linked our arms with a smile and we walked off to class together.

* * *

**Third POV**

When Sam wasn't looking, Chastity glared over her shoulder at the figure at the end of the parking lot. She knew it must have been the vampire she was told about. She also knew he wouldn't dare attack in broad daylight, even he wasn't that stupid.

In her pocket, her phone buzzed. With a quick glance at Sam to make sure she wasn't looking, Chastity pulled phone from her pocket to read the message.

**Status check.**

Chastity replied quickly.

**Safe.**

She put her phone away as soon as the message was sent, smiling the rest of the way to class with Sam.

* * *

**Sam POV**

Bonnie, Chastity, Elena, and I all sat together at the Grill. We discussed the recent adoption discovery Elena and I made and Bonnie, like Chastity had earlier, asked if we planned on telling Jeremy.

"I think we should tell him soon," I said to Elena after she explained why we didn't tell him. "Especially since there's a new vampire in town."

"Soon. Just…it's safer if he doesn't know for now," Elena said. "And I want all the details about our adoptions before I tell him. I want to be able to give him all the answers. It just doesn't make sense. Our birth certificates say our birth parents are Miranda and Grayson Gilbert."

"Maybe you should ask Jenna," Bonnie suggested.

Elena groaned and rolled her eyes.

"Look, the Elena I know would always want the truth, good or bad," Bonnie said.

"She's right. Besides, you just found out your boyfriend is a…vampire," Chastity added quietly. "So unless your birthparents are aliens, how bad could it be?"

Elena and I cracked smiles. She had a point.

"Look, we have to go to the store. My outfit is severely lacking accessories and Sam could use one or two herself."

"I almost forgot about the decades dance tonight," I said rising from my seat. "Thanks for the reminder."

"Okay, we'll pay the bill," Bonnie said.

"Okay. We've got it next time," I promised her and Chastity.

"Bye guys," Elena waved.

"See ya later."

Outside, Elena went around Jenna's car to the driver's seat while I headed for the passenger's. I was just about to open the door when my phone started ringing. I frowned when I failed to recognize the number.

"Hello?" I answered.

"Hello Samantha."

"Hey," I said confused. "Who is this?"

"You don't remember."

"I think it'd be hard to remember someone I've never met," I chuckled nervously.

"Let me refresh your memory, your sister hit me with her car."

I froze and my eyes widened. Elena rolled the passenger window down when she saw I wasn't in the car still.

"Sam? What's wrong?" she asked.

"Is that a new one?" the man on the phone asked.

I looked around the area, knowing I wouldn't recognize him but hopefully I would be able to pinpoint him by seeing who was on the phone.

When I turned around, I saw a man approaching with a phone pressed to his ear and a dark hoodie on. A dark hoodie like Elena said the vampire she hit was wearing…

Elena looked out the back of the car and gasped.

"Sam, get in the car," she panicked.

"You got away from me. You won't next time," the man promised as he started approaching me.

I gained control of my body back and quickly got in the car in time for Elena to peel away from the curb.

* * *

Later, Elena and I went to the boarding house where Elena told Stefan about the vampire finding us and calling me and I told them both what he said to me on the phone. After I while, I let out a shaky sigh.

"What does he want?" I asked. "If he wants to kill me or Elena or both of us, why call me first? How'd he even get my number?"

"That's because we're predators, Sam. We hunt. We stalk. It's often as exciting as the kill," Stefan explained.

He held up a familiar looking object and handed it to Elena.

"I want you two to take this," he said.

"This is Jeremy's pocket watch," she said.

I furrowed my eyebrows.

"How'd you get that?" I asked him.

"I took it from Damon, who took it from Logan, who must have taken it from you," Stefan answered.

Elena flipped it in her hands as we both observed the changes to it.

"What happened to it?" she asked.

"Well, it's not just a watch," Stefan started.

I watched as the spinning arrow in the middle where the clock hands used to be spun around, almost as if it was confused where North was.

"It's a compass?" I asked.

"Sort of," Stefan said. "It points to vampires."

Almost as if to prove his point, the arrow stopped spinning and pointed to Stefan. Elena closed the watch.

"Why did our father have it?" she asked.

"Gilberts were one of the founding families and back in 1864, they were among those who sought to eradicate the vampires. The compass was used to find us."

"Oh," I sighed. "So our ancestors…killed vampires. You knew them…didn't you?"

"Yes," Stefan nodded.

I stared at him for a moment. He almost seemed guilty when he answered my question, but he obviously didn't want to talk about it so I let it go.

"I want you two to keep this. That way, you'll know if you're ever in danger."

I smiled at him, as did Elena.

"Thanks for looking out for us, Stefan," I said sincerely.

He smiled back at me. "You're welcome."

* * *

"So are you taking this girl Anna you've been telling me about?" I asked Jeremy as I got ready for the dance.

"I'm stuck on punch duty," he replied. "Not exactly a good setting to have someone hanging around in."

"Not a date?"

"Well, I don't really want a date for a while," he said.

"Right," I sighed. "How are you doing anyway with Vicki being gone?"

A pang went through me after I said it. Gone. Just gone. Not dead. Gone.

"I'm getting better," he said. "Honestly, talking to you has really helped a lot. I really wanted to thank you for being there for me."

"You're my big brother, it's sort of my job," I smiled modestly.

"It's my job to be there for you," he corrected. "And I've been doing a pretty crappy job. I'm really sorry about that, Sam."

I looked at him with soft eyes. He looked so guilty and so sorry, like a puppy. I wrapped my arms around him.

"It's okay," I assured him. "I'm okay."

He returned my hug and planted a quick kiss at the top of my head.

"And I saw the outfit on my bed- I'm not wearing it."

"Party pooper."

* * *

**Third POV**

Meanwhile, downstairs, Jenna had just told Elena what she knew about Elena's adoption and her birth mother. All she could really tell her about the girl was that she was 16 years old when she had Elena and that her name was Isobel.

Elena glanced at the stairs before looking back at Jenna.

"Do you know anything about Sam's mother or father?" she asked. "Because I don't remember ever seeing either of them."

"I only know as much as you do, Elena," Jenna told her honestly. "When I asked about her birth parents, Miranda and Grayson clammed up. They said they didn't know anything about them, but that Sam their daughter now too and that was just that."

Elena nodded, accepting the answer and Jenna looked at her curiously.

"Did you tell her you and Jeremy already knew she was adopted?" she asked.

Elena shook her head.

"I guess I didn't know how to," she said, feeling guilty for the way she reacted to hearing about her own adoption. "I'm sorry for blowing up at you. Guess I know how it feels to be in the position you were in."

Jenna nodded understandingly.

"Has she asked any questions?"

"Not yet, but she will," Elena said. "And I don't know what to tell her."

"Maybe we should tell her the truth," Jenna suggested. "She'll understand."

"I hope so."

* * *

**Sam's POV**

I tightened the white bow keeping the high ponytail I put my hair in up and smoothed out the navy blue white polka-dot halter dress. I put in my pearl earrings, similar to Elena's, and rolled on my matching bracelet. I turned over my locket, which fell just above my cleavage.

"Sam?" I heard Elena call. "Jenna? Jeremy?"

"They're gone," I informed her as I walked in her room. "What's wrong?"

"The compass is moving," she panicked.

She snatched up her phone while I picked up the compass. Elena took my hand in hers and led me downstairs while she talked in to the phone.

"Where is he?" she said.

I could only guess by her tone that Damon answered Stefan's phone. Whatever he said brought her great relief since she sighed.

"Thank God. This compass was spinning. Stefan must be here, thank you," she said.

"You ready?" I asked her after she hung up.

"Yeah," she said.

Suddenly her eyes widened at something behind me.

"Sam, look out!"

She shoved me out of the way just as a figure reached out. I caught a glimpse of fangs before I recognized who they belonged to. The pizza guy- the man who called me!

"Elena!" I screamed, scared for my sister's life.

Elena squeezed her eyes shut and before I knew it, a blur passed her and threw the other vampire across the room. Elena fell to the ground and I quickly crawled to her side, checking her neck to make sure he didn't bite her.

"Are you okay?" I asked concerned, feeling relieved when I saw no blood.

I heard and felt a gush of air behind me as the other vampire dashed out of the house before he was attacked by Stefan again. When he was gone, Stefan joined me by Elena and helped us both up.

"Are you alright?" he asked Elena first since she was the one who almost died.

She just barely nodded, trying to get her breath back. I threw my arms around her, tightening my hold when I felt her shaking.

I looked over Elena's shoulder at Stefan, who asked me the same question.

"I'm fine," I replied.

* * *

I had lied to Stefan. Truth was…I wasn't fine. My sister was almost attacked, saving me from a vampire who posed as a pizza guy to get in to the house. I was so far from fine it wasn't even on the same spectrum.

Stefan had called Damon while he and I sat on the couch on either side of Elena, trying to sooth her from her near-death experience. It only took Damon a few minutes to get to the house after he was called. As soon as he got inside, his eyes landed on me. I saw them fill with relief instantly.

"Are you okay?" he asked me.

I nodded, giving him the same answer I gave Stefan.

"I'm fine," I repeated. "Elena was the one he almost bit."

"How'd he get in?" he asked as he paced around the living room.

"He was invited in. He posed as a pizza delivery guy last night," Stefan explained for Elena and me.

"Well, he gets points for that," Damon said. "Did he say what he wanted?"

I gave him a look.

"No. He was a little busy trying to kill Elena," I replied sharply.

"He went for Sam first," Elena put in. "I don't think he was after me. I just got in his way."

"And you have no idea who this is?" Stefan asked Damon accusingly.

"No," Damon replied.

I looked at him for a moment before I looked away. He was telling the truth, I could tell.

"Don't look at me like that," Damon said to Stefan when he noticed he wasn't convinced. "I told you we had company."

"Do we know if there's more than one?" I asked them both.

If there was more than one, then chances were that more people could be hurt or killed. Just this one guy could be going after more than Elena and me.

"We don't know," Damon shrugged.

"Damon, he was invited in," Stefan pointed out.

Damon nodded understanding what Stefan was saying. I, however, didn't.

"Then we go get him tonight," Damon said.

I blinked once in surprise. They were actually going to go after a vampire when they didn't even know who he was or what he looked like?

"You up for it?" Damon asked Elena.

"Yes," she answered bravely. "What do I have to do?"

"Let your boyfriend take you to the dance. We'll see who shows up," Damon said. "Coming Sam?"

"No way-"

"That's not-"

"He seems to be after her. If she goes, there's a better chance he'll show up. Besides, none of us will let anything happen to her and she has a witchy best friend determined to keep her safe that'll be there," Damon squished Stefan and Elena's arguments.

"I'm in," I said. "Better me than anyone else."

"That's a bad idea," Stefan said. "Elena shouldn't even be going."

"Till we get him, this house isn't safe. For _anyone_ who lives in it," Damon said.

Elena and Stefan exchanged hesitant glances.

"It's worth a shot," Damon convinced further.

"I'll do it," Elena nodded. "And I won't argue with Sam coming."

She looked at Stefan, who seemed surprised by her words.

"She'll be with all of us, she'll be safe and so will I."

I nodded in agreement, but I still felt a bit nervous. Damon seemed to sense this and set a comforting hand on my shoulder.

"We'll protect you," he promised.

I believed him.

* * *

At the dance, Elena and I stood by the punch bowl while Stefan and Damon looked around for any suspicious people. I felt someone touch my arm and I let out a girly shriek.

"It's just me!" Chastity said.

I let out a huff of breath and gave her a look.

"You scared me," I admitted.

"Really? I couldn't tell," she said. "Why so jumpy?"

I was about to tell her when I noticed that she came over with Bonnie and Caroline, so I held back.

"No reason," I said, giving her a look that said I would explain later.

She understood and let it go.

"Having fun?" Elena asked Caroline and Bonnie.

"No, but this took about 2 hours," Caroline answered gesturing to her outfit. "So I'm at least staying half of that."

Bonnie smiled, but it quickly disappeared when she caught sight of something- or someone- behind Elena and I.

"What's Damon doing here?" she demanded.

Elena, Caroline, Chastity and I all looked over at Damon who was standing with Stefan, both of them searching for the vampire.

"He wanted to come," Elena said. "With Sam."

"Don't worry, he'll be nice. He promised me he would," I assured Bonnie.

"So, what is this like a family thing now?" Caroline asked with raised eyebrows. "The Gilbert Sisters and the Salvatore brothers?"

Elena gave Caroline a look.

"No, but if I'm with Stefan then I have to learn to tolerate Damon," Elena replied.

"And Damon is here as a friend date. We're just friends," I added.

Especially since he was still in love with Elizabeth, who just happened to be an exact replica of me. Wow…I didn't even really think about that until just now.

"It's not like we can kill him," Elena sighed.

"There's a thought," Bonnie mused.

"Mm, I'll help," Caroline said and the two bumped cups.

Elena and I smiled and shook our heads.

"Erm, Sam, come dance with me," Chastity said as she pulled me off.

When we were far enough away, she whispered to me.

"Tell me what's going on now."

I explained the situation to Chastity. By the time I finished, Damon had swooped over with a large smile.

"I just want you to know, I was perfectly polite to Caroline and Bonnie," he said. "They don't seem to keen on giving me a chance."

"I'll go find them. Make sure they don't plan his death," Chastity said. "And I'll keep my eyes open."

I nodded at her with a smile and she walked away, leaving me with Damon. I let out a sigh and held my hand out to him. Her furrowed his eyebrows.

"What?" he asked.

"Well, we are at a dance," I said. "It's my understanding that people actually dance at these things."

He smirked and took my hand, kissing my knuckles before twirling me in place and pulling me in his arms.

"They absolutely do," he agreed with my earlier statement.

We began swaying together to the music.

"Did I tell you earlier that you look absolutely breathtaking?" he asked charmingly.

"You actually did. Before we left the house," I reminded him. "Thank you again."

I looked around at all the costumes before looking back at him.

"I wonder what you looked like in the 50's."

He chuckled.

"About the same," he said. "Maybe with slightly less better hair."

"Did you have Elvis hair?"

"Psh, please. My hair in the 50's would have made Elvis wish he had my hair."

I laughed.

"Did you like the 50's?"

His smile faded, but he was quick to bring it back.

"They were alright," he replied.

I frowned a little as he dipped me. Something happened in the 50's.

"Damon…"

"Another story for another time," he excused.

I frowned again, but accepted that he just didn't want to talk about it. Maybe one day he would tell me. Just not now.

* * *

Damon went to get a drink, so he allowed Stefan to take over "dancing babysitting" with me while Elena and Chastity stood by the punch bowl with Olivia.

"So how are you doing tonight?" he asked me as we danced. "Nervous?"

"Not at all," I played it cool. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Go for it."

"Do you have any special 50's moves locked away in that ancient vampire head of yours?" I teased. He laughed. "Because if so, I would very much love to see some."

"Ah, didn't work for Elena," he shook his head. "Won't work for you."

"Please," I asked. "Humor me a bit?"

"Absolutely not."

"Now what would Lexi say?" I mused out loud. "Maybe…live a little? Loosen up?"

He smiled at the mention of her name and I knew I got him. He twirled me around, picked me up, and dipped me back from one side before switching to the other and doing the same thing. He held me back a moment as I smiled up at him, genuinely surprised.

He lifted me back up effortlessly as I let out a breathless laugh.

"Now remember that, because it's never gonna happen again," he promised me with a smile.

"Thank you," I said to him. "You and Damon…just thanks."

"For what?"

"For making this night as normal and as fun as possible," I said.

Stefan smiled.

"No problem."

"And another thing? Show Elena that move."

He laughed again.

* * *

**Third POV**

Anna approached a dark, empty hall, still annoyed that her stupid veins popped out at the worst moment when she was just getting closer to Jeremy. She stopped when she saw the figure at the other end of the hall and sped the rest of the way down to him.

He looked down at her, momentarily confused when he recognized her.

"What are you doing here?" he asked her.

"Trying to get the journal," she answered. "As in sticking to the plan, something you're not doing. Leave the girl alone."

"I like her," he defended. "She looks like Elizabeth."

"She's not Elizabeth," Anna immediately snapped. "And the other one isn't Katherine, so don't think about going after her next. Katherine and Elizabeth are in the tomb."

"I know, but until we open that tomb, I got her to play with," he smirked.

"Don't be stupid. That girl is with the Salvatore brothers."

"They don't scare me. They never have," he scoffed.

"Please don't do this. You're going to ruin everything."

"You got nothin' to worry about," he insisted. "I'm not gonna let anything happen to you. You will get what you came for. Just let me have my fun."

"Fine," Anna gave in. "But just so you know, her best friend is a witch and she knows all about vampires. I've watched her, she's like the girl's guard dog. She isn't going to let you near her."

"An even bigger challenge," he smirked. "Fine by me."

Anna rolled her eyes as he walked past her.

"She looks like Elizabeth," he said again yearningly.

* * *

**Sam's POV**

Stefan, Elena, and I stood together by the punch bowl talking while Damon danced with a girl Elena's age. He moved dramatically with her, gliding across the dance floor like professionals.

"You really can't take him anywhere, can you?" Elena laughed to Stefan.

"He's having fun," I smiled.

I saw Elena stiffen then and her eyes widened.

"Stefan," she said. "Back corner."

I followed her eyes where a man with a dark hoodie pulled far over his head stood, watching us predatorily. Stefan started toward him.

"Get Damon," he told us before following the guy out.

Elena nodded and he left.

"Let's go," she said to me.

"I need to make sure Jeremy's okay," I said. "You get Damon, I'll go check on Jer."

"Okay," she said reluctantly.

She turned away to get Damon while I looked around for Jeremy until my cell phone buzzed in my dress pocket. The number was restricted, so I had no clue who it was, although I could probably guess and get it right.

"Hello?" I answered hesitantly.

"Hello Samantha," his voice said. "Here's what you're going to do: there's an exit right behind you so go. You have five seconds."

"Yeah, I'm gonna have to say no."

"Then your big brother, Jeremy, dies right by this punch bowl," he threatened.

I whirled in the direction of the punch bowl and saw Jeremy talking to a couple guys with the vampire just a few feet behind him.

"I can snap his neck so fast, I bet there's not even a witness. Unless you want that to happen, I'd start walking."

"Don't touch him," I snapped.

"Then walk. Through the doors."

He hung up and I slowly walked toward the doors. Closing my eyes and taking a deep breath, I pushed them open and bolted down the halls of the school.

I turned corners and ran down the long hallways until I came to another set of doors. I ran toward them and tried pushing them open only to find that they were locked. Of course they were.

I turned and saw him walking closer to me with an excited, malicious grin on his face. This really was a game to him.

I ran through a nearby door and into the room, knocking over a mop and bucket. Cafeteria, great. I attempted to run across the room, but I ended up slipping on the water that had spilled on the floor.

Before I could even blink, he was there in front of me staring at me as if I was a big juicy steak and he hadn't eaten in three years. I snatched up a pencil at a nearby table and stabbed it deep into his side as he ran at me again.

He growled and backed away from me, staring at the pencil before ripping it out of his side. I looked around, grabbed the mop I knocked over, and broke it in half with my knee. As he started storming toward me again, I stuck out the pointy end of one half and stabbed it into his stomach. He screamed and knocked me back into the vending machine right behind me. The glass clattered on the ground as I fell down with it. Blood ran down my arm and his smirk returned, much more malicious than before.

"Your blood," he said, yanking the stake out of his stomach. "It's so hard to resist."

Before I knew it he was right in front of me, ready to lunge and bite when he was thrown back suddenly. Damon stood there in front of me protectively with this glint in his eye that said he was ready to kill. Elena ran to my side and pulled me in her arms as Damon was joined by Stefan when the vampire stood up and glared, specifically at Damon.

"Nobody wants to kill you," Stefan reasoned with his hands up.

The vampire smirked again and tried to get past them at me, but Damon sped toward him and stabbed him in the stomach with my mop stake. He fell to his knees, grasping on to the stake in pain.

"Now you feel like talking?" he asked.

"Screw you," the vampire muttered.

Stefan twisted the stake in his stomach and he groaned.

"Why are you doing this?" Stefan asked. The vampire actually laughed a little and shrugged.

"Because it's fun," he said.

Damon kicked the stake in his stomach further, making him gasp in pain and me hide my face in Elena's shoulder. She stroked my hair in a motherly way and rocked me back and forth.

"What do you want with Sam?" I heard Stefan ask. "Why do you keep going after her?"

"She looks like Elizabeth."

That's when Elena's rocking halted and I froze up too. I looked at the vampire and saw that he was looking straight at me with a shocked Stefan and Damon looking at him. Elena held me closer to her, if that was possible.

"You knew Elizabeth?" Damon asked.

"Oh. You thought you were the only ones?" the vampire chuckled. "You don't even remember me. I knew Katherine too you know."

"Tell me how to get into the tomb," Damon demanded.

"Elizabeth, though," the vampire continued ignoring Damon. "Was the only one for me. No matter how hard Katherine tried to make me think otherwise."

"How do you get into the tomb?" Damon growled.

"I'm not telling you," the vampire snarled.

Stefan plunged the stake even deeper into his stomach and he groaned in pain.

"The grimoire," he said.

"Where is it?" Damon asked.

When he hesitated, Stefan twisted the stake and he gasped in pain. I clamped my eyes shut and did my best to tune out his pained groans and cries. Vampire or not, I couldn't listen to anyone be in pain.

"Check the journal. Use the journal! Jonathan Gilbert's!"

"Who else is working with you?" Stefan questioned.

"No," the vampire said. "You're gonna have to kill me."

Before anyone could reply, another dark haired man entered the cafeteria.

"That's fine by me," he said.

He sped over and thrust his hand in to the vampire's chest, ripping out what I could only assume was his heart. I gasped and covered my mouth, Elena's reaction mirroring mine while Stefan and Damon stared in total shock as the vampire who tried to kill me fell over, veins popped and skin turned gray.

The newcomer dropped the deep red muscle to the ground and looked over at me, frowning when he noticed blood.

"Sorry I'm late," he apologized to me. "Seems it's time for me to be replaced."

"Who are you?" Damon asked.

"No longer important," he dismissed.

"Why did you kill him?" Stefan asked suspiciously. "Are you working with him?"

"Well that's a stupid question," the man chuckled. "Who I am no longer matters. I had a job to do and I failed, but orders were orders. I couldn't allow him to live after he'd harmed Samantha."

His sorrowful eyes met my curious ones.

"I am sorry I was too late to protect you," he said. "Hopefully the next one does better."

With that, he was gone as quickly as he had come, leaving us all in shock.

* * *

"Are you two okay?" Stefan asked from the kitchen.

He was making a cup of tea for Elena while she and I sat on the couch in the living room. I stroked my bandages around my wounded arm, hot chocolate in hand. Tea just wasn't…my cup of tea…

"Is it weird if I say yes?" I asked.

"Is it true?" he retorted.

"I should feel more upset or scared or something, but I…I just don't," I said. I looked at Elena. "What about you?"

"Same here," she answered. "I actually feel kind of exhilarated."

"It's the adrenaline," Stefan explained.

He brought Elena her tea and joined us on the couch.

"I guess," she said. "Sam fought back tonight."

"I wish she didn't have to fight at all," Stefan said looking at me.

"Me neither, but I'm still proud of her," Elena smiled at me. She wrapped her arm around me. "I'm happy you're safe."

I smiled, but it disappeared just as quickly when I thought about the vampire who killed the other vampire trying to kill me.

"You didn't know who he was?" I asked Stefan.

He shook his head, knowing who I was talking about.

"Damon didn't either. If he's a threat, we'll keep you safe, but from the looks of tonight…I'm not sure. Either way, we'll keep you safe. Both of you," he assured Elena and me.

I nodded and stood up from the couch.

"Well, as fun as fighting a vampire was today, I'm a little tired. Think I'm gonna turn in now," I excused myself. "Good night guys."

"Good night, Sam," they said in unison.

I headed up the stairs to my room with my hot chocolate, sighing as I plopped myself on my bed. It's been a long night with vampires trying to kill me and another mysterious vampire offing the one trying to kill me. I could only hope that the mysterious vampire who got away wasn't a threat.

* * *

**Third POV**

"You failed?"

"She's alive, but she was harmed. Her blood was spilt."

His sire sighed.

"You had done much better at this job than all the rest had. I was hoping I wouldn't have to replace you."

"I'm sorry I let you down. I'm sorry I let her down."

"I am as well. You know what to do."

The man nodded and hung up, picking up the stake sadly. He was prepared to plunge it in to his chest when a blonde man appeared in front of him.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"I could ask you the same question," the lighter haired man retorted. "Why are you following her?"

The man pressed the stake in his chest lightly.

"I can only assume for the same reason you are," he said. "I failed."

The blonde man nodded.

"I see. Will there be another coming?"

"For my sire, yes. I assume yours is the reason you're here."

"I take it from your surprise your sire had no idea mine sent anyone."

He nodded at the blonde man.

"Protect her. Do better than I did. Make sure my successor does the same."

The blonde man nodded and watched as he plunged the stake through his own heart. He sighed after the body fell and took out his cell phone. He dialed his sire's number and brought the phone to his ear.

"Sir," he said. "I have news."


	13. Children of the Damned

Fave Song from this episode: Floating Vibes by Surfer Blood

I'll admit, it's a little slow, but then again so is the episode :/ Just saying.

Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy it lovelies.

* * *

"What exactly is a grimoire again?" I asked Chastity.

We were sitting together in my bedroom, discussing the situation we were currently finding ourselves in as we skimmed through her family's grimoire. After the whole decades dance incident, Chastity went in to full panic mode and decided that I would not be involved in supernatural business unless she was also involved. As a result, Damon decided have her help him, Stefan, Elena, and I apparently free Elizabeth from the tomb.

I was actually a little surprised Stefan agreed to help Damon open the tomb since he had been against it before. Maybe their relationship really was getting better. Anyway, he decided to help Damon and in turn, Damon also decided Elena was going to be helping.

Considering our relationship was better than his relationship with his brother and my sister, Damon assumed I would be helping too. While he assigned Elena to journal duty, he asked me to have Chastity look through her family's grimoire for anything that may help.

One thing that had been pushed on to the back burner at my insistence was the vampire who killed the vampire who attacked me at the decades dance, apparently because he was supposed to protect me. Chastity, to mine and Elena's surprise, didn't seem all that worried about the arrival of the random vampire. In fact, she was glad he showed up to kill the one that attacked me. She reasoned that because he did it to protect me, he most likely wasn't a threat and- though I was surprised she thought so- I agreed with her.

"It's a book of spells, basically," Chastity answered my earlier question. "They're passed down from generation to generation in families of witches. I'm guessing Damon thinks my family would have written something about the Bennett grimoire since we've been here as long as they have if not a little longer."

I hummed to myself as I flipped through the book.

"How do you feel about all of this?" I asked her. "I didn't want you to get dragged in."

"To be honest, I'm not exactly thrilled," Chastity said. "Releasing your evil twin from the tomb sounds like a whole lot of work for a punishment."

I also decided to tell her about Elizabeth and Katherine. If Damon was going to drag my best friend in to this, then she deserved to know every last detail.

There was also someone else who deserved to know a couple things, but I was just trying to find the right way to tell Jeremy without damaging his relationship with Elena. The bond between them was on thin ice as it was.

"Yeah, but if it'll make Damon happy…" I muttered absentmindedly.

I felt her stare on me and looked up from the book, furrowing my eyebrows at her curious eyes.

"What?" I asked.

"What's going on between you and Damon?" she asked immediately.

"What do you mean?" I laughed nervously.

"I mean he's just…different around you. I've seen him around others and I've seen him around you. He's a killer who doesn't hesitate to hurt people- not even his own brother- yet with you…that vampire at the decades dance, the vampire on your little road trip who kidnapped you…he's different around you. I think he actually cares about you and all you care about right now is his happiness."

I blinked slowly, not sure what to say. I knew what I felt, I knew it wasn't good and that pretty much everyone would have something to say against it, but I couldn't deny that I cared about Damon.

Sighing, I shut the grimoire and pushed it toward Chastity.

"It doesn't matter what I feel," I told her. "We're going to free Elizabeth from the tomb and then after that…he'll be gone."

She cast me an unreadable glance before sighing too and looking down at the cover her grimoire.

"You're probably right."

* * *

Jeremy sat at his desk, filling his sketch with the proper shaded areas, his brow creased in concentration. I smiled as I watched him. I always loved watching him draw. He always seemed so at peace when he did and I was one of the only people in the world he ever let watch his whole process.

Sensing me watching him, he looked up at me and smiled.

"Hey."

"Hey," I returned his greeting. "Sorry for staring, it's just been a while since I've watched you draw."

"Don't worry about it. It's only a little creepy," he teased. "There's been worse."

"Has there?" I raised an eyebrow. "Like who?"

"Anna," he replied. "She showed up at the decades dance, did I tell you that?"

I couldn't help but laugh.

"You didn't mention that," I said. "Wow. She's really in to you."

"She's a little bit of a stalker chick. She left me a voicemail saying she wants to meet at the Grill tonight."

"Huh," I said. "You're right. She could be a stalker chick. Or maybe she just really likes you and that's her way of asking you out."

He scoffed.

"Or maybe she's just weird."

"Do you like her?"

He looked back at his drawing.

"I don't know," he admitted quietly.

I smiled slyly at him.

"Is that blush I see?"

"Shut up."

I laughed and sat on his bed behind him.

"So what makes her weird?" I asked him. "The fact that she goes to the library?"

"No. It's just…she believes vampires are real," he laughed. "And she really wanted to see Jonathan Gilbert's journal."

My face dropped at that.

"Why did she want to see it?" I asked, trying not to sound too curious or suspicious.

"No idea. Mr. Saltzman has it anyway. He was curious about it because I wrote that essay for extra credit on it," he told me before turning back to his sketch. "Kinda weird how so many people want to know about it now out of the blue."

"Who else asked about it?"

"Elena and Stefan were looking for it earlier. Must be something in the air making people want to see the thing."

"Maybe," I mused.

* * *

I hopped down the last step of the stairs, feeling confused as I started heading toward the kitchen where I heard the sound of voices.

"Hello, Sam," he greeted before I entered the room.

Confused by the sight before me, I looked at Damon weirdly. He was cutting tomatoes on the island counter with a towel thrown over his shoulder while Jenna sat on the one in front, a glass full of wine in her hand.

"Hey," she greeted me with a smile. "Good to see you've come down from your room finally. We're cooking dinner."

"Oh," I smiled, still wanting to know what Damon was doing here. "It smells great."

"Stefan and Elena with you?" Damon asked me.

So that was it, I should have figured. He wanted to talk about the journal.

"They'll be here soon," I informed him.

As far as I knew, Elena and Stefan didn't have any leads on where the journal might be. Elena told me that they were still trying to find it in our things.

Damon hummed to himself.

"How about Chastity?"

I shook my head, telling him we didn't find anything in her grimoire, and he nodded once, obviously not pleased but accepting.

I leaned against the counter beside Jenna and watched Damon curiously. He smoothly cut through the tomatoes, sneaking glances up at me every now and then as he did. I saw a certain spark in his eye each time he did and even though I wanted so badly to believe it could be a sign of something similar to what I felt, I dismissed it each time.

I did look exactly like Elizabeth. The very woman he was trying to free from the tomb so he could leave town with.

* * *

I carried a stack of plates from the kitchen to the dining room table, crossing paths with Damon about halfway there. He deliberately stepped closer to me, brushing against me as I attempted to pass him.

"Whoa. Mmm," he smirked teasingly.

I rolled my eyes at him but smiled.

"Don't do that," I said.

"Do what?" he asked innocently.

"You know what," I said back.

He chuckled. "Can't help it. I was hoping Stefan or Elena would have come in in time to see."

I rolled my eyes again and set the dishes out on the table.

"Let's not try to provoke my sister or your brother," I begged. "You're actually getting along with them- for once- and I don't want the peace broken because you want to get a rise out of them."

"But it's so much fun to see their faces whenever I'm near you," he fake whined. "Plus, I get to be near you."

My heart stopped for a moment before picking back up at a rapid pace I was sure he could hear. I shut my eyes and repeatedly told myself he didn't mean it that way.

"Yeah, well when you get Elizabeth back, you'll have the real thing again," I said quietly.

I heard his sudden stopped stirring of the sauce on the stove and I felt his gaze on the back of my head. Though he didn't dismiss my subtle accusation that he was using me as a temporary replacement for Elizabeth, I could practically feel his disbelief that I would actually say something like that. Truthfully, I couldn't either.

I cared about Damon and I knew on some level he cared for me, though I couldn't help the feeling that I was right. He only wanted me around because he missed Elizabeth.

He cleared his throat awkwardly and I heard him continue stirring. Feeling safe, I turned back to the counter to grab the silverware.

"Well…where are your sister and my brother? They're missing family night, which I am enjoying immensely," he said looking over at me.

Our eyes met as he silently chastised me for my earlier accusation.

"They're on their way," I answered him. "Elena said ten minutes at the most."

Satisfied with the answer, he turned back to the stove and I turned back to the table, setting the silverware out. I was halfway done when he asked another question.

"Do you think it's real?" he asked.

I looked up from the table at his back.

"What do you mean?"

"This renewed sense of brotherhood," he clarified. "Can I trust him?"

I opened and closed my mouth.

"Wouldn't that be something you ask Elena if you really don't trust him?" I asked. "I just feel like she would be able to give you a better answer since they are dating."

"Exactly. They're dating and she's biased. You're a bit biased too, but at least your conscience won't let you lie to me," he replied.

I looked at him with soft eyes. It broke my heart that so much happened between him and Stefan that he had to ask me- someone he just met this year- if he could trust Stefan- his brother for over a century.

"You like to see the good," he said knowingly. "Which is another reason why I asked you. I wanted to know how much good there was in his offer."

"I like to think you can," I answered weakly before turning back to the table.

Stefan and Elena were quiet and they were being stingy on what they were and weren't finding, even with me. I didn't know where they were, only that they were going to be here in the time I told Damon. I didn't know what they found or if they found anything. Obviously Damon's communication with them wasn't any better. Which meant one thing; they were hiding something.

I turned again, only to come face to face with Damon. He was looking down at me with pleading, prying eyes.

"Can I trust them?" he asked again. "I want you to answer me. Honestly."

This was a different Damon. He was sincere. He truly wanted to know if he could trust Stefan and Elena and it…alarmed me to see that there was no humor, no cockiness, none of his usual arrogance in his eyes. The amount of trust and faith he had in my opinion was heartwarming, but it was nerve wracking all the same.

If I lied and told Damon I thought he could trust them, I would never be able to get over hurting him if they proved me right and double crossed him. If I told him the truth and I turned out to be wrong, I could damage Damon and Stefan's relationship even more and I didn't want that either.

"I don't know," I finally answered him. "That is my honest answer."

He nodded and pressed a soft kiss to my forehead.

"Thank you."

* * *

Damon leaned against the counter, watching me as I put cheese in a bowl to bring to the table.

"You know, there was a time I trusted him more than anyone," he told me.

"And there was a time Stefan trusted you more than anyone," I reminded him. "Clearly a lot has happened between you two, but the fact is…it's not too late. There's still hope that you two can repair your relationship and recover some of that trust."

"Well, I couldn't trust him after his betrayal," he shrugged with a smirk.

"Have you even tried to trust him again?" I asked. "Have you given him reason to trust you again?"

He didn't answer and stared at the floor in front of him, making me sigh.

"Trust isn't a one-way street, Damon," I said looking at him. "It's hard to rebuild once it's lost, believe me I know, but it doesn't happen by itself. You have to try. Maybe if you do, he will too."

"I just want her back," he murmured. His icy eyes switched up to me. "I'm sure you can understand that."

Though it hurt me more than I wanted it to, I nodded. He loved Elizabeth so much. I know anyone who loved someone that much would do whatever it took to get them back. I would, I knew Elena would.

Of course I didn't want anyone to get hurt as it was pretty much guaranteed if the other tomb vampires got out, but I understood that love could make people do rash and desperate things. I couldn't blame Damon for being in love and wanting the one person he thought he had left back.

"I understand," I nodded.

Elena walked in then, looking between the two of us with a confused- almost worried- expression.

"What's going on?" she immediately asked.

He gave her a smile.

"Elena, there you are," he greeted. "You're just in time. Dinner's about ready."

She walked to my side and put a hand on my shoulder.

"What is he doing here?" she asked me.

"It's family bonding night," he answered for me. "Since you and Stefan are dating, he and I are pretty much family to you Gilberts now. I thought we could talk, you know. Trade secrets, things we may need to know."

There was a looming threat to his voice.

"Where is Stefan?"

Elena visibly gulped.

"He made a stop. He'll be over soon."

He smiled sweetly at her.

"Sam's already answered this, but do you understand how much I want Elizabeth back?"

Elena looked from him to me, a questioning expression on her face. I motioned for her to just answer him honestly.

"Yes," she nodded. "Of course I know how much you want her back."

"Then you also understand what I will do if anyone gets in my way," he told her. "Make sure you tell Stefan that."

She didn't get the chance to respond and neither did I before he walked away from us. Though the dark, implied threat wasn't directed to me, I couldn't help but feel shivers run down my spine and I turned to Elena, noticing she was in a similar state as me.

"Elena," I whispered. "Please, tell me you two are really helping him."

She looked me straight in the eye.

"We are," she insisted. "We are."

In hindsight, I probably shouldn't have trusted her word.

* * *

Damon and Jeremy sat together in the living room on the couch, their eyes glued to the TV screen as they played Jeremy's favorite video game. They talked, Jeremy clearly not happy by the fact that Damon was winning at a game he claimed he never played before.

Jenna and Elena stood with me in the kitchen, pulling dinner together as Elena watched Damon warily and Jenna watched with a very different look in her eyes. She leaned in to whisper to Elena and I.

"He is ridiculously hot," she whispered not too quietly.

I really had to agree with her, but I didn't say it out loud knowing that Damon could hear us. Elena pressed a finger to her lips to shush Jenna.

"He's an ass," she whispered back to Jenna, with a knowing look toward Damon.

"He can be," I defended. "He has his moments though."

Jenna gave me a sly smirk.

"Does someone have a crush on her sister's boyfriend's brother?" she teased.

I blushed, but rolled my eyes.

"He wishes," Elena scoffed as she searched through an old box.

Jenna smiled at her comment.

"What are you doing with all this stuff?" she asked Elena.

"I thought there might be something about my birth parents," Elena sighed, obviously disappointed.

I furrowed my eyebrows. Her birth parents?

As if sensing my confusion, Elena's head snapped up from the contents of the box to me.

"Our birth parents," she corrected herself. "I haven't found anything on them so far."

She and Jenna exchanged glances while I looked between them suspiciously. First Elena was keeping secrets with Stefan, now with Jenna? What was going on?

"Have you told Jeremy?" Jenna asked us after clearing her throat awkwardly.

"We will," Elena assured her. "When the time is right."

I opened my mouth to revert back to what she was meant before about her birth parents, but was cut off when the doorbell rang. Elena volunteered to get it, knowing that it was Stefan. She left the kitchen and I watched as Damon got up to follow her, making Jeremy give an annoyed "dude" when he paused the game they were playing.

I looked to Jenna.

"So, do you know anything about our birth parents?" I asked her, trying not to sound too suspicious. "Names? Anything?"

She swallowed and was about to answer, but got interrupted by Elena.

"Sam, could you come over here for a sec!" Elena called from the door.

I excused myself from Jenna before approaching my sister, who wasted no time in pulling me outside on to the porch. Stefan and Damon, who were already standing out there, looked at me expectantly.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"Mr. Saltzman doesn't have Jonathan Gilbert's journal anymore," Stefan told me.

"Mr. Saltzman doesn't have it anymore?" I asked. "When did that happen?"

"Earlier today. Someone got to it right before me," Stefan answered. "Jeremy was the one who gave it to him, but do you know if he told anyone else about it?"

"Why not just ask him?" Damon asked.

"I don't want him dragged in to this," Elena told him. "Sam and him are really close. If he told anyone else about it, he may have told her. Damon don't-"

"Anna," I said, stopping Damon from going inside to Jeremy. "He mentioned this girl Anna who wanted to see it."

"Anna who?" he asked.

"I don't know," I said. "She's this girl he met at the library. He told her about the journal, but he already gave it to Mr. Saltzman."

"We need to find her," Damon said seriously.

"He was supposed to meet her at the Grill tonight. She'll be there."

"Great. I'll give him a ride."

I moved in front of the door, stopping him from going back inside.

"Damon, you're not using Jeremy as bait," I said.

"We don't know who she is, Sam," Damon retorted. "We need Jeremy to point her out."

I didn't move from my spot, neither of us looking away from each other. Stefan and Elena looked between us, both seeming extremely uncomfortable by what was happening.

Suddenly, Damon's eyes softened and he stepped closer to me.

"He won't be hurt," he assured me. "I will not let anything happen to him."

I blinked up at him.

"Do you promise?"

He smiled softly.

"I promise."

Tearing my eyes away from him, I looked to Elena. She shifted uncomfortably and glanced at Stefan before nodding. I looked back to Damon.

"Okay," I gave in. "But I'm coming too."

He smirked.

"Wouldn't have you anywhere else."

* * *

Stefan and Elena stayed behind at the house while Jeremy, Damon, and I went to the Grill to track down Anna. As I felt obligated to give her a heads up so she didn't worry her head off about it later, I sent a text to Chastity to let her know what Damon and I were up to. She responded saying that she couldn't make it out because of a family dinner but she still wanted me to be careful and to tell Damon that if anything happened to Jeremy or me, she would set him on fire.

When we got to the Grill, Damon steered me to the bar and ordered us drinks to make us look as casual and inconspicuous as possible while Jeremy made his way over to the foosball tables to meet Anna.

"Can I ask how you plan to go about this?" I asked Damon while we waited. "What exactly are you going to say to Anna?"

"Nothing much," he said innocently. "Maybe just a 'where's the journal' here, a threat there."

"Damon," I said sternly. "Please. Jeremy really likes this girl. Even if he doesn't know it yet."

"If she turns out to be a crazy, old vampire who's only using him to get to the journal, you'll be begging me to threaten her," he smirked.

"No I wouldn't and she's not," I denied. "We don't know who she is. For all we know, she could be a history enthusiast who's just curious to see an old journal."

He rolled his eyes.

"Keep telling yourself that, Sammy-kins," he sang.

He looked over his shoulder and his face suddenly dropped. Astonishment and shock showed in his eyes and I followed his gaze over to the pool tables where Jeremy and a dark-haired girl played an intense game of foosball together. I couldn't help the smile that grew on my face as I watched my brother laugh, genuinely having a good time with the girl who must be Anna.

I looked back to Damon.

"You know her, don't you?" I asked already knowing he did by the look on his face.

He finished his drink and placed the glass back on the bar top. He stood up and took my hand in his.

"It's probably best I get you home," he told me. "This is something I should deal with myself."

"Damon-"

"I know her, but I don't know what she's capable of anymore," he said. "I don't need her using you against me in any way."

"Is she a vampire?"

He nodded once, not taking his eyes off her.

I sighed, giving in, and stood up.

"Alright. Let me know if there's anything I can do to help. And don't let her hurt Jeremy."

* * *

There wasn't much I could do after Damon dropped me off at home except sit around and wait. Jeremy was still at the Grill, safe and hanging out with a few of his friends, Jenna stepped out for a bit, while Stefan and Elena were nowhere to be seen or heard from. I assumed they were with Damon, that he called them after confronting Anna.

At least I hoped they were. Part of me knew that wasn't true, however. Part of me knew that Stefan and Elena were hiding something and it had something to do with Emily's grimoire. They were looking for it on their own because they had no intention of letting Damon open that tomb. I knew the look of guilt on Elena's face all too well and I saw it a lot today.

I could still hope. So that's what I did. I hoped that Stefan and Damon healed their relationship and go their trust for each other back. I also hoped that if they got the tomb open, they could find a way to keep the more dangerous vampires inside. As much as I wanted Damon to be happy, I wasn't willing to risk the safety of everyone in this town for it.

I sighed and leaned against my window, peering outside hoping to see someone. I wanted to know what was going on.

"Hey Sam," Jeremy greeted after what felt like hours of me sulking alone in my room.

"Jer," I smiled. "There you are. I was wondering when someone would get home."

"I want you to meet my friend, Anna," he said, gesturing to the girl who appeared beside him in my doorway. The girl from the Grill. The one Damon was going to confront.

My smile faded just a bit, but I didn't let it show. I held out a hand to her.

"Hi," I greeted her. "It's nice to meet you, Anna. Jeremy's told me a lot about you."

"Ah, flattering," she smiled slyly up at Jeremy as she shook my hand. "And it's nice to finally put a face to the name. Jeremy talks about his favorite little sister non-stop."

I laughed as the blush on Jeremy's face grew brighter.

"Okay, well I am going to use the bathroom quick and pretend like you two never mentioned that to each other," he said.

He headed toward the bathroom, leaving Anna and I alone. My smile disappeared completely and I looked to Anna as she looked at me with a smile.

"Your brother is so adorable," she told me. "I really do like spending time with him. As I'm sure you saw at the Grill."

"Don't hurt him," I begged her, already knowing she knew I knew what she was.

"I don't have to hurt him," she said obviously. "I may, however, need to hold on to you."

Before I could question her, she sped toward me and slammed my head against the wall. My vision blurred and the last thing I saw before everything went black was Anna bending down to pick me up.

Being kidnapped by a vampire. This was becoming too common.

* * *

**Third POV**

"I'm sorry," Stefan apologized insincerely after telling Damon he never had any intention of letting him open the tomb.

"So am I," Damon returned bitterly. "For thinking for even a _second_ I could trust you."

"Oh you are not capable of trust," Stefan retorted. "The fact that you're here means that you read the journal and you were planning on doing this yourself."

"Of course I was going to do this by myself because the only one I can count on is me!" Damon snapped back. "You made sure of that many years ago, Stefan."

His eyes switched to Elena.

"But you…you had me fooled," he admitted. "So did your sister."

"She didn't know what we were doing," Stefan defended Sam while Elena looked at Damon guiltily. "We knew Sam would never be able to lie to you, so we kept her out of it so she wouldn't have to."

Damon shook his head.

"So what are you going to do now?" he asked his brother with a thick voice. "Because if you try to destroy that, I'll rip her heart out."

"You won't kill her," Stefan stated shaking his head, though he stood in front of Elena protectively.

Damon raised his eyebrows in a challenging manner, almost as if he had just been dared to do it. In three seconds flat, he had moved from his spot across from Stefan behind him, holding Elena back against him in a chokehold.

Stefan watched, now alert that Damon may actually kill Elena.

"I can do one better," Damon threatened, biting in to his wrist. He pressed it against Elena's mouth, forcing her to drink his blood as she gasped.

"Give me the book, Stefan, or I'm snapping her neck," he ordered.

"You won't snap her neck-"

"You really want to test me right now?"

"You won't do it because you know Sam would never forgive you," Stefan said quickly.

Damon faltered ever so slightly at the mention of her name and dropped his wrist from Elena's mouth, encouraging Stefan to go on.

"You know that Sam would never forgive you for turning her sister, if you do it. She may not even forgive you for going this far. Are you really willing to risk her to get Elizabeth back?"

Damon looked from Elena back to Stefan.

"Maybe I'll just turn her too," he said after a while. "Then she'll have a few centuries to get over it."

Stefan pressed his lips together, his brows creasing together in frustration.

"Give me the book, Stefan," Damon ordered again.

"Let her go first," Stefan said looking absolutely terrified. Inside, he was. Damon wasn't joking around here, he was willing to turn Elena and Sam and Stefan knew as well as Damon did that he was more than capable to do so.

"Drop. The book."

"I'm not going to give this to you until she is standing next to me," Stefan told him calmly, though still panicked.

"Problem is I no longer trust that you'll give it back," Damon argued.

"You just did the one thing that ensures that I will," Stefan told him.

Damon gestured with his head for Stefan to drop the book, a silent order Stefan slowly followed. Damon wasted no time in releasing Elena, pulling his arm off her as if she had burned him.

Slowly at first, Elena walked toward Stefan as if afraid Damon would snatch her back again. When she reached the mid-way point, she ran in to Stefan's arms and closed her eyes, instantly feeling safe.

Damon watched the two in betrayal and anger, eyeing the book on the ground every now and again to make sure Stefan didn't move to grab it again.

"You don't deserve it," Stefan told him suddenly. "But you have it."

"What are you talking about?" Damon sneered.

"Sam's trust," Stefan clarified. "She trusts you a hell of a lot more than she should. And frankly, I don't think I'll ever understand why."

He took a terrified Elena away from Damon then, leaving him standing alone to reflect on what he had just done.

Stefan was right. He didn't deserve Sam's trust and after tonight, he wasn't sure if he was going to have it any more. And that broke his heart more than he would ever admit.


	14. Fool Me Once

**Fave Song of the Episode: Run by Leona Lewis**

* * *

My eyes slowly opened as I groaned, putting my hand to my dully aching head. I blinked a few times to get myself out of my dizzy haze, focusing on the unconscious figure next to me. I gasped when I realized it was Elena.

Now alert and fully aware that we were on a bed together in what appeared to be a motel room, I groggily pulled myself up to check on my sister. She was breathing softly and I didn't see any blood. How did she get here?

Anna, I thought. My head throbbed just at the thought of her name. She must have taken Elena after she got me.

I scanned the room, stiffening when I noticed the figure slumped in a chair a few feet away from the bed. He was snoring softly, showing no sign that me waking up woke him up.

"Elena," I whispered as quietly as I could as I shook her gently. "Elena wake up."

Her eyes slowly fluttered open, momentary confusion taking over her face before her eyes widened and she sat up like a bullet.

"Sam," she gasped.

I pressed a finger to my lips, pointing to the sleeping man on the chair. She followed my finger and her eyes widened more.

"Ben," she mouthed silently.

I furrowed my eyebrows. Ben? As in the Ben Bonnie was dating? Why would he be here? What did he have to do with anything?

Elena wrapped her hand around my wrist, pulling me off the bed with her silently. She led me across the carpet to the door quietly as she and I cautiously watched Ben. My heart thumped wildly in my chest as we passed him to get to the door, a silent sigh making my shoulders relax as we did without a hitch.

Elena's hands shook as she reached up to undo the chain on the door while I watched Ben.

I only glanced back to Elena once before I heard him.

"I wouldn't."

The two of us gasped and I whipped my head back around to see Ben, now on his feet only inches in front of me. How did he get there when he was on the chair fast asleep only seconds ago? Was he…

He seemed amused by our reactions, but stepped even closer to me, staring deep in to my eyes.

"Don't try and escape," he commanded. "Don't even move."

I watched as his pupils dilated, confirming my suspicion. He was a vampire. Though I was tempted to tell Elena to run and get in the light- I didn't see any form of daylight ring like Damon and Stefan had plus the curtains were tightly closed- I kept eye contact to give him the impression his compulsion was working.

"Do you understand?"

"I understand," I agreed, keeping my voice monotone.

He scoffed, a smile growing on his face. I cheered silently at my victory as he turned to Elena.

"Don't make me compel you too," he warned her. "Your sister is staying here no matter what you do."

She nodded, making him believe she wasn't going to run. He smiled at the both of us, satisfied with his work, and then turned to get something out of the mini-fridge.

I turned to Elena and she quickly yanked the door open while his back was turned. Sunshine fell on us and Elena took one step outside before bumping in to another figure. I recognized her immediately as Anna.

She grabbed Elena by her hair, dragging her back in to the motel room with her and she seized my upper arm. We both wrestled with her, trying to escape, but she had a strength that was almost comically disproportionate to her size.

"Seriously?!" she asked Ben annoyed as she shoved Elena and I back toward the door on the other side of the room.

"I told the little one not to move," Ben defended, seeming confused as he pointed to me before pointing to Elena. "And I warned her. I told her that her sister wasn't going anywhere even if she did. I did that eye thing you taught me!"

"And forgot the lesson about vervain," Anna scolded as she continued dragging Elena and me. "They hang around vampires, Ben. Duh!"

"Who are you?!" Elena demanded in pain. "What do you want?!"

"Anna, why are you doing this?" I asked her.

"Doesn't matter," Anna said dismissively, still sounding annoyed.

She opened the door and shoved Elena in first.

"Anna," I said again. "Anna, stop. Whatever you want-"

"I will get," she stated confidently. "As long as I have you and your sister."

With that, she shoved me in to the room and slammed the door shut behind me. The bathroom she shoved Elena and I in was small and didn't seem like it was cleaned often. Elena picked herself up off the floor, immediately rushing to my side and wrapping her arms around me.

"Are you okay?" she asked me.

"I'm fine," I assured her. "What about you?"

She shook her head. "Fine. How do you know her?"

"It's Anna," I told her. "The girl Jeremy met."

She seemed confused for a moment before it registered in her mind.

"Anna's a vampire?" she gasped. "What does she want from us?"

I shook my head and opened my mouth to reply, but the sight of two figures inside the bathtub caught my attention. Passing Elena with wide eyes, I rushed to the tub and crouched by the side.

"Bonnie!" I cried out. "Chastity!"

Elena whirled around.

"Oh my god!" she gasped.

She joined my side, shaking Bonnie first.

"Bonnie! Chastity!"

Tears welled up in my eyes, but I held them back. Elena was crying freely, trying her best to wake our best friends up. I looked back at the door. What could Anna possibly want from us and them?

I turned back to the tub, stroking Chastity's blonde hair. I could only hope she and Bonnie were alright. I needed to get us out of here.

* * *

I had found a couple of white cloths and got them wet with cold water, handing one of them to Elena. I placed my cloth over Chastity's forehead.

"What do you think they want from us?" Elena asked me as she pressed the cloth against Bonnie's forehead.

"I don't know," I replied staring at Bonnie. I thought I saw her eyes start to move under her eyelids…

Her eyes slowly opened and I let out a sigh of relief.

"Bonnie," I smiled, thankful she was alright.

"Sam?" she asked sounding disoriented. Her gaze switched to my sister. "Elena?"

"You're okay," Elena said sounding relieved.

"My head," Bonnie groaned.

Her eyes widened when she looked across from her at Chastity, who was still unconscious.

"Chas. Oh my god, he got her too."

"Who did?" I asked her. "Ben?"

"Ben? Ben…oh my god, Ben is a-"

Elena cut her off gently.

"Sh," she said. "They can hear."

She stood up and went to the sink, turning the tap on as high as it could go before returning to the tub. Chastity's eyes finally started to open as she did and she let out a loud groan.

"Urgh, where am I?" she demanded groggily. "I feel like I went to a frat party…"

I let out a small laugh. She was just fine.

"Not exactly," I told her.

Her eyes widened and she yanked herself up in the tub.

"Bonnie?" she said. "Are you okay?"

"Just stupid," Bonnie scolded herself.

"No, he had me fooled too," Chastity comforted her. "What's going on? Why are we here?"

I opened my mouth to respond, but got caught up in staring at her. My gaze went to Bonnie, then back to Chastity. Realization set in me. Anna was a vampire, Damon knew her, she wanted to see Jonathan Gilbert's journal, and Chastity and Bonnie were both here. It was so obvious.

"I think it has to do with the tomb and Emily's grimoire," I said.

The three looked at me in confusion.

"The grimoire?" Bonnie repeated.

"Damon said it could be used to open the tomb," I explained.

"Why didn't I know any of this?" she asked with accusing eyes.

"What do you mean, you didn't…"

I trailed off, seeing the look on Chastity and Elena's faces.

"You didn't tell her," I deduced, feeling confused. This had to do with Emily, who was Bonnie's ancestor. Why wouldn't anyone tell her?

"I was just trying to protect you," Chastity spoke.

"We didn't want you to be involved," Elena added. "I didn't want it to come to this. It's dangerous."

"What do you mean?" Bonnie questioned.

Elena explained the tomb situation to her as I sighed. This secrecy thing was getting to be too much. I was all for protecting our loved ones, but keeping people in the dark…well Bonnie being here proved that it was just as dangerous as telling them. People had to know what they were up against, they deserved to know.

But I knew I wasn't any better. I was keeping secrets from Jenna and Jeremy, even though they both rightfully deserved to know what Elena and I were getting involved with- especially since Jeremy was involved with Anna and because of what happened with Vicki.

Suddenly the door burst open, revealing an annoyed looking Ben. I stood quickly, standing so that Elena, Bonnie, and Chastity were hidden from his view. I didn't know what he and Anna wanted exactly, but I knew for sure that their intentions were anything but good.

He smirked much like the vampire from the decades dance had and turned off the tap, keeping his eyes focused on me with humor.

"That's cute. Have you seen your size? You'd make a perfect little snack and you actually think you can protect your witch friends and your sister."

"I'll die trying at least," I replied strongly. "I don't know what you want, but whatever it is I won't let you hurt them or Elena to get it."

"That's funny," he chuckled. "Considering Bonnie said the same a few hours ago about you and your sister. And Chastity, as I gather, would gladly die for the two of you."

"You're wasting your time," Bonnie told him. "I'm not going to help you."

"Neither am I," Chastity said.

"Well it's fine if you don't," he said to her. "We don't need you, you're just here to help Bonnie because- as I understand it- you're a little more practiced than she is."

Chastity pressed her lips together, glaring at him while he stepped closer to me.

"As for you, Bonnie," he began, grabbing my arm and seizing Elena by the back of her neck. "That's why they're here. Motivation for you to behave."

So that's why Anna took us. We were meant as a means to blackmail Bonnie.

"You know, you shouldn't be so desperate. You made it too easy."

Oh if I could only- That was low, even for him.

"Leave her alone," I snapped.

He snickered at my reaction before yanking Elena and I both toward the door.

"She wants to talk to you," he told us.

He shoved us back in to the main bedroom, where Anna was sitting by the window. Elena stiffened and Ben shut the door behind us, staying in the bathroom with Chastity and Bonnie. I looked back before looking to Anna.

"He better not hurt them or-"

"He isn't bright, but he's smart enough to know not to do that," Anna stopped me. "We need them alive."

She scrutinized Elena and I with her eyes then, making Elena look extremely uncomfortable while I tried my best to stay strong for Elena.

"Well, well, Elena Gilbert," she started again. "And Samantha Gilbert. You two really are Katherine and Elizabeth's doppelgänger. You must have the Salvatore boys reeling. Especially you, Sam."

"You're Anna?" Elena asked with raised brows.

"That's me," Anna smirked. "I met Sam last night, but I assumed your brother mentioned me. I mean, we're like, practically dating."

I narrowed my eyes at the sarcastic girly tone to her voice. My anger level was only raising with her sarcasm in addition to Ben insulting Bonnie. These two were pushing it.

* * *

"Bonnie is not going to open the tomb," Elena told Anna confidently, folding her arms across her chest.

"Oh I think she will," Anna retorted as she peered out the window through the curtains.

"I know Damon wants to open the tomb to get Elizabeth, but you…Why do you want to open the tomb?" I asked Anna curiously.

"Do you really want Elizabeth out that bad?" Elena asked, assuming Anna wanted the same as Damon. "Or are you trying to get Katherine?"

"Trust me," Anna said calmly. "No one I know wants to see either of those girls again. Damon- the lovestruck idiot he is- is the only one who wants Elizabeth out."

"Then what is it?" Elena demanded. "Or who is it?"

"My mother's in there," she answered seriously. "Elizabeth couldn't help herself. She just had to toy around with both of the Salvatore brothers and encouraged Katherine to do the same. I'm not surprised Damon wants her back, he was so whipped over her back then and he still is to this day.

Anyway, when Elizabeth got caught, so did her sister and my mother. I watched Jonathan Gilbert take her away."

My face fell and I watched her with sympathy. She looked so sad, so desperate. Anna's mother was taken and locked in the tomb? No wonder she wanted to open it. She just wanted her mother back. And Jonathan Gilbert was the one who separated them.

I looked to Elena. Our family's ancestor took Anna's mother from her. She must despise us.

"I'm sorry, Anna," I told her sincerely.

"You really mean that, don't you?" she smiled bitterly.

"Of course I do. Why wouldn't I?" I asked.

Anna blinked in surprise but quickly regained her cold composure.

"Yeah, I think we'll skip the dead mom bonding so you can start serving a purpose," she said snidely.

"Which is what?" Elena asked annoyed.

"Leverage."

She drew out two items from her pocket, holding them up for Elena and I to see.

"These belong to you?" she asked waving our phones around.

Elena stood to snatch hers back, but Anna held them back from her grasp with an 'ah, ah'. I didn't bother trying to grab mine for that very reason.

"Now, which one should I use?" she asked. "I'm sure Stefan is worried about both of you, but a certain incident from last night tells me Damon really only cares about one of you."

She looked to me with a smirk while I furrowed my eyebrows as I looked at Elena. She visibly trembled when Anna mentioned last night, which made me wonder what happened to make her react that way. And what did Anna mean that Damon really only cares about one of us?

"I think I'll give your boyfriend a call for starters," Anna said to Elena. "We'll see what he has to say."

* * *

**Third POV**

"Elena, are you okay?" Stefan answered the call that said from Elena.

"She's fine, for now," Anna added the last bit ominously. "Tell me you have the grimoire and she'll stay fine."

Stefan grasped on to the railing in front of him in anger. He hated that Anna had this leverage over him and he vowed silently that if Elena was hurt, Anna wouldn't get away with it.

"I can get it," he told her, fully aware Damon was listening from behind.

"Which means your brother has it," Anna figured. "And I have the witch- both of them."

She watched from the corner of her eye as Sam stiffened when she mentioned the two. It really was comical how a human girl believed she was capable of protecting witches from vampires. Still, she had to admire the dummy's bravery.

"So one of you had better meet me in the very public town square in 30 minutes so we can safely discuss how fun it's going to be to work together."

With that, she ended the call, giving a glaring Elena a sarcastic smile.

Back at the boarding house, Stefan lowered his phone. If Anna had Elena, Bonnie, and Chastity, then that meant she had Sam as well. He wondered why she didn't use Sam against him. She only mentioned Elena.

"Go ahead," Damon said. "Grovel again. Oh, wait, no. I don't care."

Stefan stepped toward him as he made to leave.

"Damon, it's not just Elena," he said. "She has Sam too."

Damon froze, but only for a moment before continuing out. Anna had Sam.

Anna had Sam.

Sam.

His Sam.

No, not his Sam. She was nothing to him. At least, she shouldn't be.

He growled to himself. Dammit Anna.

* * *

**Sam's POV**

Anna left, leaving Ben in charge with the order that he keep us "buttoned down" and use violence instead of compulsion since it wouldn't work anyway. Ben had brought Bonnie and Chastity out in to the room with Elena and I and was currently scrutinizing Bonnie similar to the way Anna watched Elena and I as the four of us sat on the beds.

"So you're the key to this," he said. "Literally. The one who opens the door."

He set his jacket down on a chair and sat down, looking at Bonnie curiously.

"Tell me, how long have you been a witch?"

"Just recently," Bonnie replied stiffly without hiding the hate that she was talking to him.

"Hm," Ben nodded. "What about you?"

Chastity glared at him.

"You know, I could easily reach down her throat and rip out her insides," he said, nodding toward me. "Or I could just drain her dry right in front of you. Your choice."

"A little longer than Bonnie," Chastity answered reluctantly.

"Why's that?" he asked her.

"Is this an interrogation?"

"Well I am kind of new to this world," he said. "I'm curious to the other…_supernatural_ species."

"Yeah well I'm curious to when you became such a bitch," Chastity retorted. "I remember when you used to go to Mystic Falls high. You may have thought I was just some stupid kid, but people looked up to you. You were a jock that was supposed to be going places. Now look at you. Being bossed around, playing babysitter."

"Chastity," I tried calming her.

"Kind of like you," he retorted. "Why are you so damn protective of Bonnie and Sam anyway? What do you have to gain?"

"They're my friends," she said through her teeth. "Sorry, you might not know what that means anymore since I'm sure you don't have any. That means I won't let anyone or anything hurt them. Including you."

"What's a human doing with vampires and witches anyway?" he asked suddenly, containing his anger toward Chastity and her insults.

"None of your business," Elena replied shortly.

"It is a little bit," he corrected her. "I mean, I'm here playing- what was it?- babysitter to you. The least you can do is answer my questions."

"You kidnapped us," I reminded him. "Do you really think you deserve answers?"

He scoffed at me and stood up abruptly, speeding over until he was only inches away. I gasped and backed up, eyeing him fearfully as he leaned down toward my neck and inhaled deeply.

"Seriously, how are you still alive?" he asked mostly himself. "You smell amazing. Better than anything I've had, for sure."

"Leave her alone!" Chastity shouted.

The door burst open, sunlight pouring in to the room. Ben hissed loudly as rays of light hit his arm, burning the skin. I yelped in surprise when a pair of arms lifted me off the bed, speeding me from the room before I could even register what was going on.

I was set on my feet outside in the parking lot of the motel Anna must have brought us to. I looked around wildly, trying to spot Elena, Bonnie, or Chastity or at least my savior. There was no one.

"Hello?!" I called.

Nothing.

Before I could do anything else, I felt a light, sharp pain enter my arm like a needle had been inserted in my skin. My head became light, my vision blurred, and for the second day in a row I became unconscious.

* * *

**Third POV**

Anna sat on a bench in the town square, looking around for whichever Salvatore brother would be meeting her. And one of them would be meeting her if not both.

"Got a hot date or are you just planning on nabbing the entire Gilbert family?" a newly arrived Damon questioned from beside her.

"A party, right next to the old cemetery," she answered him, not the least bit surprised by his appearance. "Isn't that nice of them? Lots of warm bodies for starving vampires."

"I told you I work alone."

"Yeah, so do I. But you're minus a witch and I'm minus a spell book. So what do you say?"

"Stefan will come after you, you know that," Damon warned, referring to the fact that Anna had Elena. "For messing with Elena."

"Then he won't be too happy if I kill her when I don't get what I want," she seethed threateningly. She tilted her head slightly then. "And what will you do? I didn't mention it, but I know you must be aware of the fact that I also have Sam."

"What makes you think that concerns me at all?"

Anna laughed.

"Fine," she said. "Take your chances then. Just know her blood is on your hands."

She stood up and started walking as Damon groaned. He wasn't too proud to admit to himself that he cared about Sam and he knew that if anything happened to her and he had the chance to prevent it, he'd never be able to forgive himself. There was something he felt whenever he was with her and he didn't want to lose her. It'd be like losing Elizabeth all over again. Maybe even worse.

"When do you want to do this?" he succumbed.

She stopped, a smirk rising on her lips.

"God, it's like 1864 all over again," she laughed as she walked back to him. "You Salvatores are truly pathetic when it comes to women. Or is it just her? Elizabeth part two."

All humor left her face and she turned serious.

"Tonight. After sundown. Meet at the church."

Church. Where the tomb was.

* * *

**Sam's POV**

When I woke up, it was a repeat of earlier today. Or yesterday. However long ago it was that I woke up in the motel room.

Instead of being somewhere unknown, this time I woke up in my own room.

"Thank god," I heard.

I blinked, clearing my vision, and felt nothing but surprise when I saw the person at the foot of my bed.

"Ms. Turner?"

What was Chastity's aunt doing in my room? She smiled at me before coming to the right side of my bed.

"How many times do I have to tell you to call me Claire, hun? How are you feeling?" she asked.

I didn't know what to say. How…what…where was-

"Ben," I whispered. "Where is Elena? And Chastity and Bonnie? They were-"

"Relax, sweetheart," she soothed. "Stefan is on his way to them now."

Stefan? What- how did-

"I can see you're confused," she said. "I know what Stefan and Damon are. They know what I am. Sheila and I found your sister, Chastity, and Bonnie and we let him know."

"But what am I doing here?" I asked her. "Why did I get out and not them? How did I even get out? Who saved me?"

"I know you have a lot of questions, sweetheart, but I can't answer them all," she said. "What I can tell you is that you were brought to me and I brought you back here before I went to Sheila's so we could find the other three. After we told Stefan where to go, I came back here. I'm sure he'll be more than capable of bringing them back safely."

Her cellphone buzzed twice and she looked down at it with a smile.

"Speak of the devil," she said. "They're all safe."

I closed my eyes with a sigh of relief.

"Thank god," I whispered. "Who saved me?"

She looked at me hesitantly.

"I'm not sure I'm the one who should tell you about all of this," she sighed. "I know you want answers, sweetheart, but I'm asking you to be patient."

Though I wanted to know who got me out of that motel room, and why they didn't save my friends and my sister too, the fact that they were safe was more important to me. So I reluctantly nodded and agreed when Claire offered to take me to Sheila Bennett's house, where Stefan was supposed to be taking the three.

Though she didn't know who saved me, I couldn't help but wonder if it was the same man who saved me at the decades dance. I suppose I was just going to have to wait. My sister and friends came first.

* * *

When Claire and I arrived at Sheila's house, Claire parked in front of the house alongside the curb. I barely had the door open before Elena wrenched the front door open and bolted toward me, throwing her arms around me as soon as I was in reach.

She, of course, had about a million questions for me regarding who saved me and what happened to me. I told her what I could, which wasn't much but she was glad I was alright like I was glad she was.

After her, Bonnie and Chastity each hugged the life out of me like I did them. Then it was Stefan's turn. He hugged me tightly, telling me he was worried when he saved the other three but didn't see me there. I asked what he did with Ben and he told me he left him alive, which though he made me incredibly angry, I was glad to hear. Ben was doing what he was forced to do.

They caught me up on what was going on. Sheila and Bonnie agreed to open the tomb so Elizabeth could get out and they would kill the rest with fire. So far, Stefan wasn't completely on board. He wasn't even convinced Damon would go with the plan because he and Elena double-crossed him last time.

That's what brought me to the boarding house now. Elena thought it would be best to get Elizabeth out so this whole thing would be over and done with, but no one believed Damon would go with the plan. So I volunteered myself to talk to Damon.

Though I didn't want the tomb open, I was sure Sheila would be able to protect herself and so would Bonnie. I knew that Sheila was strong enough to kill them all and I was grateful they agreed to help. Just as long as they weren't hurt at all in the process.

He was in the living room, getting his jacket on, when I entered. He stared at me in surprise for a few moments before I saw relief join the surprise.

"You're okay," he stated. "You stage a jailbreak?"

"Not exactly," I replied. "It's a long story. The important part is that Stefan managed to save Elena, Chastity, and Bonnie and they're all safe."

"And so are you," he said picking up the grimoire from the table in front of him. "Ah, my brother. Ever the white knight."

I took a deep breath.

"Elena convinced Bonnie and her grams to help you," I started.

"I doubt that," Damon simply said.

"I know you're hurt," I said softly. "I know you're hurt that Stefan and Elena lied to you when you put your trust in them, but you have to understand they were just trying to protect the people in this town. And if I knew, I would have told you."

"I know you would have," he admitted. "They lied to you too, yet here you are. Arguing their case."

"Damon, you want Elizabeth back. Everything you've done was to get her back. I'm offering you a chance to do that."

"Why do you think you have that chance?" he questioned. "Because Elena talked Bonnie and her grams in to helping, which means there must be something else planned. I'm not wiling to take that risk again."

He started walking away from me, making me plead more.

"Damon, please," I begged. "You were willing to trust them yesterday."

"Fool me once, shame on you," he said turning back to me.

"Damon, I promise you, we will help you get Elizabeth back."

He shook his head, groaning as he looked away before looking back unconvinced.

"I wish I could believe that. I wish I could trust them."

"Then trust me," I pleaded, stepping forward. "I know they hurt you- I know that. But you and I have an understanding. I can trust you and I can trust Elena and Stefan. If they tell me that they'll free Elizabeth, then they're going to free Elizabeth. Please…just trust me. I wouldn't ask you if I didn't think we could take their word for it."

He still seemed hesitant, though his hardened expression had softened considerably. I knew it would still take more, so I did something that would give Elena a heart attack if she saw. I unclasped my necklace and held it out to him.

"I'll be there for you," I promised him. "Just…please. Trust me?"

We stood there across from each other, neither of us moving. He stared in to my eyes with his icy blue ones, almost making me forget the reason I was there. I actually forgot that the two of us weren't the only two people in the world.

He finally moved, placing the grimoire on the table as he made his way toward me, stopping only inches away from me. He took my necklace and raised his fingers to my neck.

"You know Anna won't stop. No matter what I do," he stated as he put my necklace back on for me.

"Maybe there's a way to get her mother out too," I suggested. "That's all she wants, but…we'll figure it out."

He let his fingers comb through my hair, sending delightful shivers down my spine. His touch made me feel hot…amazingly so. He sighed and brought his lips to my forehead, adding to the hotness spreading through my veins.

"I have always trusted you," he told me. "Just know that's all this is. Me trusting you. Not them."

I nodded understandingly as he pulled back.

"And never forget that what we have goes deeper than an understanding," he said sternly.

Then he walked away, leaving me confused by what he meant. What we have goes deeper than an understanding? He felt something too?

I looked down, not willing to linger on it for too long. After all, in just a few short hours we would be getting Elizabeth out of the tomb. He would be gone.

He wasn't mine. He never was.

At least he chose to trust me.

* * *

When we arrived at the church, I was confused by the amount of people drinking, laughing, and gathering around bonfires. Damon and I made our way through them as I observed them all, now feeling more worried than before.

"There's a party?" I said. "I hope they don't get too close to the church."

It was bad enough Bonnie, her grams, Chastity, Claire, and Elena were all going to be in danger. I didn't want anyone else being put at risk to get Elizabeth out.

"Your hope, not mine," Damon contradicted my hope.

I gave him a look, which he merely smirked at, before Matt and Caroline came up to us, smiles on both of their faces.

"Sam, hey!" Matt greeted me.

"Hey Sammy sweetheart," Caroline grinned.

"Hey guys," I greeted the two with a smile.

Damon groaned, obviously annoyed by the interruption, but stopped walking. I gave him another look telling him to be patient. We'd get him Elizabeth soon enough.

"How have you been?" Caroline asked, her fingers intertwined with Matt's.

I looked down at their hands and a sly smile grew on my face. So the two of them? That was great. Clearly they were happy together, though Matt did seem a tad bit annoyed.

"Long story, no time to tell it," Damon said simply, grabbing my hand.

"I wasn't talking to you," Caroline said with a glare at him.

"Sure you were," Damon retorted.

Matt cleared his throat, trying to diffuse the awkward air, and held out his hand to Damon.

"We haven't met, I'm Matt," he introduced himself.

Damon glanced down at Matt's hand.

"Matt, there's a reason we haven't met."

I shot another look his way before apologizing to Matt and Caroline, dismissing Damon's antsy, impatient behavior as him being exhausted and wanting to meet up with Stefan and Elena. I said my goodbyes to the blonde couple before walking away with Damon, who was still holding on to my hand.

"Did you have to be that rude?" I asked him after we were a good distance away. "You couldn't have at least pretended to be happy to meet Matt?"

"Why would I do that? Once I get Elizabeth back, it won't matter. I'll never see either of them again."

Hurt flowed through me at his words, but I pushed it aside. It didn't matter what I felt. As long as he was happy.

* * *

We met up with the others at the church ruins. Damon greeted each and every one of them stiffly before striding past them all, the grimoire in hand. He descended down under the church to the tomb while I stayed by the others.

"Everything okay?" Stefan asked me.

I could tell he was a little surprised I had gotten Damon to agree to work with us.

"Yeah, everything's fine," I assured him.

I looked to Bonnie, Grams, Claire, and Chastity. "Ready?"

"I guess so," Bonnie said reluctantly.

I stepped closer to the four of them.

"Listen, I wanted to thank you all for helping," I said sincerely. "I know you're all taking a risk. Just know that I appreciate what you're doing."

"We aren't going to be much help," Claire said referring to herself and Chastity. "Turner witches can't break Bennett spells."

"Let's just do this," Chastity said determined. "So Damon can get his stupid girlfriend and get the hell out of our lives."

* * *

We descended down the stairs, joining Damon in the dark and gloomy area. In front of us was a slab rock door with a pentagram drawn on, blocking what I assumed was the tomb.

A shiver crept down my spine as I stared at it while Grams lit the four torches she placed in a square formation in front of the slab door while Damon, Stefan, Elena, and I stood at the bottom of the stairs, Damon and Stefan standing further in front of Elena and I.

"Air. Earth. Fire," she spoke as she lit the fires.

"Water," Bonnie said taking out a water bottle from the bag on her shoulder.

She handed the bottle to Grams, who in turn sprinkled the contents near the water torch.

"That's it?" Elena asked from the bottom of the stairs. "Just water from the tap?"

"As opposed to what?" Grams asked.

"I just figured maybe it would have to be blessed or mystical or something," Elena explained her thought.

Grams smiled at her then turned back to her work. I sighed, wishing that they didn't have to be involved in all of this but still grateful they were.

I watched from behind as Damon unraveled a plastic bag filled with a dark colored liquid. Blood.

"What's that?" Stefan asked him.

"It's for Elizabeth," Damon answered. "Gotta have something to get her going. Unless your girl's offering a vein to tap."

He smirked over his shoulder at Elena.

"Damon," I sighed, though I didn't miss how he didn't mention me opening up a vein as he said.

He and Stefan whispered to each other while Elena and I exchanged glances. What were they talking about?

Bonnie looked up at us then.

"We're ready," she announced.

* * *

Bonnie and Grams stood inside the square of fire, their hands joined as they faced each other. Their eyes were shut as they chanted together in a foreign language I wasn't able to recognize. Chastity and Claire stood just outside the fire on either side of the Bennetts, watching the two closely like guard dogs.

"What are they saying?" Damon asked.

"It sounds Latin," Stefan replied.

I didn't think it was Latin. Witchcraft went way back before Salem, I knew that much for sure. It was possible the witch language must've been a lot older than Latin even.

The flames flared, growing brighter and higher, making the temperature rise in the underground room. Stefan stepped between Elena and I, his back still to us in a protective manner. Damon took a few steps back too, getting closer and closer until his back was inches in front of my face.

There was a creak then. The sound of stone and stone rubbing against each other ripped through the room like an avalanche. I looked to the doorway, seeing it slowly beginning to slide open to reveal total blackness.

"It worked!" Bonnie exclaimed.

"Of course it worked," Grams said proudly.

"Good work guys," Chastity whistled.

"Sheila, you alright?" Claire asked.

"Fine, dear," Grams dismissed.

"We have some fires to build," Damon said to Stefan.

Stefan turned to Elena and I.

"I'm gonna go get the gasoline, I'll be right back," he told us.

Once Stefan was gone, Damon looked back at Elena and me.

"You ready?" he asked Elena.

"What?" she asked confused.

"You think I'm gonna go in there by myself so you can seal me in?" he quizzed, eyeing Bonnie and Grams distrustfully.

"Don't take her in. I'll bring the walls down," Grams warned him.

"You'll bring the walls down if I don't. You think I trust you?"

"As much as I trust you," Grams shot back.

"Stop," I spoke up, stepping between Elena and Damon. "I'll go."

"No, Sam," Elena immediately said.

Damon looked at me with wide eyes.

"He needs leverage. He needs to know that the door won't be shut when he gets inside," I explained to the others. I turned to Damon then. "You need leverage, you take me. Leave Elena here where she'll be safe."

Damon groaned, but relented. He grabbed one of the torches, sarcastically asking if it was alright for him to do so, before gesturing toward the tomb. I knew I wouldn't be locked in, but I didn't want Damon to be either. Hopefully Grams and Bonnie didn't shut the door.

"If she gets hurt, I'll make you wish we locked you in," Chastity threatened Damon.

Damon merely scoffed before leading me to the tomb. I sent the others a reassuring nod before entering the tomb.

The inside was pitch black, illuminated only by the torch Damon carried. I felt slightly claustrophobic, my heart beat going faster and faster with each step we took inside. I couldn't see much of anything that was lit by the fire, but I could hear light whispers of incoherent words. A terrifying realization came over me.

"They can sense me, can't they?" I asked Damon.

"Yep," he confirmed. "Now where is she…stay here."

He disappeared, taking the light away with him, making me stare after him in shock. Had he really just left me alone in the dark? In a tomb full of ravenously hungry vampires? Though I wanted to go after him, I stayed rooted to the spot I was standing in. Better to stay where I am than to wander off and possibly get lost.

I fished out the flashlight in my pocket, turning on the light so I could at least see a little. It worked to an extent, but it wasn't as good as the torch a certain someone took with him when he walked off.

I froze when my eyes fell on a figure on the ground. Her body was mummified, like a corpse. She was slumped against the wall, not moving and not seeming like she even had the strength to. Her bloodshot eyes opened and she looked straight at me, a raspy whisper escaping her mouth.

I immediately covered my mouth with my hand. This poor woman…down here since 1864. She must have been starving. With the way she was focused on me…she wanted blood and she could smell mine. Something about her seemed familiar though. The dark hair…the structure of her face…

"Mother," I heard from behind me.

I shrieked in surprise, whirling around to see Anna standing behind me, gazing down at the mummified vampire. Her eyes switched to me.

"Little miss Gilbert," she greeted, passing me to go to her mother.

She looked sadly at her before glaring at me.

"Your sister's boyfriend did this, you know," she told me.

"His father did," I corrected her.

"And Jonathan Gilbert," she added. "I made a promise a long time ago that it would be Gilbert blood that brought her back to life. I had Jeremy all set to go, but here you are. Besides, you smell a hell of a lot more appetizing."

"Okay," I nodded.

The coldness disappeared and turned to shock.

"Okay?" she repeated.

"You just want your mother back," I said holding my wrist out to her. "I really am sorry you lost her for so long because of my ancestor. The least I can do is help you get her back."

She pulled herself out of her surprise before she lunged and bit in to my wrist. Though I offered, I couldn't stop the small scream from escaping my mouth. Anna yanked my wrist to her mother's mouth. It took a while, but eventually her mother started to move, her lips coming down on my wrist as she sucked my blood.

"I'm gonna get you out," Anna assured her gently.

My head began getting lighter and I felt as if the life was literally being drained out of me.

"How much does she need?" I groaned.

"All of your blood wouldn't hurt," she answered darkly.

I went to move, but Anna kept my wrist latched to her mother's mouth. I began struggling, now growing fearful that Anna would actually let her mother drain me of all my blood.

"Let her go!"

A blur tackled Anna off of me, making me immediately stand up straight again as I ripped my wrist from Anna's mother.

"Stefan!" I called, recognizing the figure.

"Sam, get out of here!" he instructed me.

"No!" Anna shouted, lunging back to me.

"Go. Go! I'm right behind you!" Stefan said.

Hesitantly, I followed Stefan's orders and got the hell out of the tomb.

* * *

The first words I heard when I came back up were "The spell is still up. We can't get them out."

I faltered at the top of the steps when I heard Bonnie tell Elena that.

"What- what do you mean?" I asked.

They all turned to me, relief filling Elena's eyes and she ran up to me.

"You're okay," she sighed. "And Bonnie and Grams are…they're gonna find a way to fix it."

I turned around to look at Stefan who was just coming up behind me slowly.

"How could you go in not knowing if you could come back out?" I asked him.

"I heard you scream," he answered after staying quiet for a second. "I couldn't let you get hurt."

I looked back to Bonnie and Grams with begging eyes before it dawned on me. Stefan couldn't get out…Damon couldn't get out. We couldn't just leave them in there. Not when Elena and Stefan both promised they'd help Damon. His trust in them was fragile enough as it was.

"Even if we break through the seal, we won't be able to hold it for long," Grams told Stefan.

"Stefan," I whispered.

He looked to me and nodded once, telling me to wait outside the tomb, before he disappeared back inside. I was tempted to run after him, but Elena must have sensed this and she wrapped an arm around me protectively, pulling me back with her away from the tomb.

"They'll get out," she assured me. "They'll get out."

I hoped they would.

* * *

**Third POV**

Damon paced around, looking desperately for Elizabeth. A sickening feeling crept over him when he failed to spot her.

"She's not here," he said to himself.

Stefan ran up to him, panting his name out.

"She's not here!" Damon shouted, throwing the blood bag against the rock wall.

"Stefan, they can't hold it much longer!" they heard Sam's voice call down.

"She isn't here," Damon stated confused. "How could she not be here?"

"She isn't worth getting stuck in here," Stefan convinced. "We need to go now!"

Damon didn't say anything, just looked around the space some more in case he missed her. When he still failed to see her, he looked up at his brother and for the first time in a long time, Stefan saw an emotion he thought he'd never see on his brother's face: pain.

Damon went to follow Stefan but before he made it to the steps, a hand seized around his left ankle. Damon stumbled in surprise, jerking his limb out of the weak grasp easily.

"What the hell?" he muttered.

"Who is it?" Stefan asked from the steps.

Damon shined his flashlight in the left corner by the steps, his mouth dropping slightly at the familiar looking fabric of a dress.

"It's you," he said.

"Stefan! Damon! Please!" Sam called again.

Her voice earned Damon's attention as he remembered her face, the light in her eyes, the warmth of her smile. Sam. Sam was calling him.

* * *

**Sam's POV**

"I have to go down there," I said when Stefan and Damon still didn't appear.

"Sam no-"

Elena reached out to stop me as I moved toward the door, but we both stopped when Stefan appeared.

"Finally," Claire said. "I was starting to think you two wanted to stay down there."

"Stefan," Elena and I said, relieved and in unison.

He made eye contact with both of us before turning and backing out, slowly revealing Damon behind him but he wasn't alone. He was carrying someone…a woman.

"Who is that?" Elena asked.

My eyes widened when I saw her. Her skin was desiccated, her hair was dull and her curls were drooping, and she looked like any touch would break her…but I recognized her. I looked at her face every day.

"Is that…Katherine?" I gasped.

I looked over at Elena whose eyes were wide and mouth hanging.

* * *

After we got over the initial shock of seeing my sister's twin, Damon set a badly decomposed Katherine down on the ground as Stefan, Elena, and I ran out in to the woods where Stefan said Anna had Jeremy. We rushed out to his side, Stefan assuring us he was alright.

Jeremy began to groan and I pressed a kiss to the top of his head. I was thankful Anna kept good on her word not to touch him when she took her mother away from the tomb.

The sound of twigs and leaves crunching caught my attention as Damon stood a couple meters away from us. My heart broke at the pain on his face, the sheer confusion. He was suffering. He didn't find Elizabeth and he didn't understand why she wasn't down there.

I felt his pain. It was like it was my own almost. But I could never understand it. Elizabeth, the woman he waited over a century for, wasn't in the tomb. He did everything he could and more to get to her and she wasn't there.

Slowly rising up, I walked toward Damon. He didn't move, just watched me as I raised my arms and wrapped my arms around him in an embrace. I pulled him closer to me, pressing my face against his shoulder. He didn't move at first, but eventually his arms wrapped around me, his head resting down in my hair.

"I'm sorry," I whispered to him.

We stood there wrapped up in each other's arms. It felt like it was just us. I wanted so badly to take his pain away but I knew no matter what I did, I couldn't fix it for him. I couldn't take that pain away from him.

* * *

**Third POV**

Later, Damon sat silently in the darkness of the motel room. The door opened and the light switched on, revealing him to the two women who had just entered.

"You knew Elizabeth wasn't in there," he said to Anna.

"You wouldn't have helped me," Anna said feeling a little guilty.

Before even she could blink, Damon stood up and sped over to her mother, wrapping his hand around her throat tightly. Pearl, too weak to fight him off, could only gasp as Anna panicked.

"Why do you get a happy ending?" Damon raged.

"Damon please!" Anna begged as she tried to pull him off her mother. "You wouldn't have helped me! You know you wouldn't!"

"You knew she wasn't in there and you didn't say a word!" Damon accused.

"The guard. The one at the church. She promised to turn him," Pearl managed to tell him. "He was obsessed with her. She had him under her spell, like everyone else. He freed her."

Damon finally released Pearl, letting her fall to the ground with her daughter going down with her.

"What and she just left her sister to rot down there with the rest of you?" Damon asked in disbelief.

"The plan was to abandon Katherine in the first place. If you think the fact that Katherine is her sister means anything to Elizabeth, then you don't really know her at all," Anna said softly.

Damon huffed in disbelief and looked out the window.

"And I last saw her in Chicago. 1983," Anna continued, earning his attention again. "She knew where you were, Damon. She didn't care."

She didn't care. She didn't care.

She didn't care.

It was all for nothing.


	15. A Few Good Men

**I stink severely don't I? Sorry for being gone so long again. I'm working on this whole thing, I really am. It's tougher than one would think to make a plot go a certain way without changing the characters too much. And by that, I mean Sam. She's going to get screwed over a few times, but I don't want it changing her too much just yet. All that goodness comes in future sequels.**

**Anyway, if you're still with me, thank you all so much for being patient with me. I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

**3 Kathy**

**Fave Song- Your Eyes Are Liars by Sound Team**

* * *

It was like it was all for nothing.

Elena convinced Bonnie and Grams to open the tomb so Damon would be able to get Elizabeth out. Their plan was for Damon unlock the tomb and let Damon go in to find Elizabeth, but they never intended to take the seal keeping them in off. Damon would have been stuck down there along with the rest. Then Stefan went in to save me, making Elena beg Bonnie and Grams to be lenient and lift the seal at least long enough to get him out again- and Damon for me.

The spell worked and the seal was lifted, but Elizabeth wasn't down in the tomb and the seal didn't go back up. The worst part was that Bonnie lost her grams. She passed away after we took her back to her house. She appeared to be sleeping at first, but when Bonnie couldn't wake her…

Claire said that Grams used up too much power for her body to handle and it ended up killing her.

Anna got her mother out. That was the only positive thing that came out of opening that tomb. Damon found out the love of his life was never was in the tomb and had never bothered to look him up, Grams died, and the seal didn't even stay up.

All thoughts of Katherine stayed out of our heads (or at least mine and Bonnie's head) until after Grams' funeral. She had stayed with Pearl and Anna gathering her strength back. As far as I knew, neither Stefan nor Damon heard anything from her. Not that they really had a problem with it, it was just making Stefan nervous because he didn't know if or what she had planned.

Bonnie left town for a while. She just needed some time away from everything and frankly, I didn't blame her. Elena and I hadn't gotten a hold of her since she left, but all things considered…I think I knew Bonnie's reasons for not contacting us and I respected her choice. It wasn't one I was happy about, but it was her choice.

Besides, compared to Damon's coping method, I was a lot more comfortable with Bonnie's choice. I sighed to myself and sat back in my window seat, wishing that my mother was still here. She would know what to do.

* * *

**Third POV**

"Are you going to tell Sam?"

It was the first question Stefan asked Elena after she told him about what Jenna found out about her birth mother and that she hadn't decided whether or not she would be visiting her possibly deceased birth mother's best friend in Grove Hill. She sighed at the question, a crease of worry and guilt etched in to her forehead.

"I don't know, Stefan," she answered. "She doesn't even know that I knew she was adopted, let alone that we most likely came from different birth parents."

"When are you going to tell her?" he asked then.

She shook her head.

"Later," she replied. "Now…just isn't the right time. There's too much going on and I don't want to make things worse for her."

Stefan nodded and held her supportively in his arms.

"Well whenever you decide to tell her, I'll be there. For both of you."

Elena sighed in gratitude and allowed her eyes to close as she rested her head comfortably against his chest. It wasn't the right time to tell her little sister the truth about her adoption. There was so much Elena herself didn't know about her own adoption and their father didn't mention anything about Sam's adoption in any of his medical journals or records. According to Sam's birth certificate, she was the daughter of Grayson and Miranda Gilbert- same as Elena. Her parents were basically ghosts.

And Elena couldn't help but get the nagging feeling that maybe they were for good reason.

* * *

**Sam's POV**

"Don't you think it's weird?" Chastity asked without looking away from the three books she was currently making hover over the coffee table in her aunt's living room.

It was a trivial spell according to her, but Claire insisted that Chastity needed to practice even the trivial things in order to keep her magic sharp.

"What?" I asked from the sofa across from her.

She pulled her legs up on the arm chair she was sitting on to sit criss-cross before answering me.

"Damon has been binging on sorority girls to cope with Elizabeth not wanting anything to do with him and not even you can get through to him," she started while I frowned.

I did try talking to Damon a few times about his blood binging, but he insisted that he was fine and that I had nothing to worry about. He was coping in his own way and while I definitely didn't like that he was using people as blood bags, he promised he wouldn't kill anyone and honestly I knew that was the best I would get from him.

"Also he seems to be completely forgetting the fact that his former side chick and Elena's twin sister from another century is in town and no one's heard anything from her, which is extremely unsettling," Chastity continued. "I forgot to ask how Elena's doing with that."

"She…was in shock. It's one thing to hear about her and see pictures of her. It's a whole other thing to actually physically see her," I answered leaning back in to the cushions. "She's dealing though. There's a lot of that going on now."

"Yeah," Chastity agreed, finally allowing the books to gently touch the table surface.

Her big green eyes switched up to me then.

"How are you dealing?"

I opened my mouth to answer, but she abruptly cut me off.

"And no lying."

"I'm fine."

"I said no lying, you filthy liar."

"I'm not lying."

"And you're a stubborn filthy liar."

I sighed and held up my hands in an exasperated manner.

"What do you want me to say?" I asked rhetorically. "That I'm absolutely destroyed that Bonnie lost her Grams and has to go through that pain because Elena and I wanted Stefan and Damon out of that tomb? That I feel completely helpless because I don't know what to do for my sister who saw a replica of herself and now has to deal with her living in the same town? Or that I hate that the love of Damon's life knew where he was for 145 years and did nothing because she never cared about him and now he's suffering because of that?"

I let out a deep breath while Chastity stared at me in shock.

"Wow I think that's the most I've ever heard you talk about how you feel," she said surprised. "That's…good. You can't keep that stuff pent up inside, ya know."

I pressed my lips together and rolled my eyes.

"Yeah…it's just…my feelings aren't that important when Bonnie and Damon are the ones who got screwed over. Bonnie especially."

"True…but that doesn't mean you should short count yourself," Chastity told me. "You don't have to be everyone's rock. You don't have to fix everyone."

If I could only stop feeling like I had to.

* * *

_Speaking of fixing_, I thought to myself as I knocked on the door of the boarding house later that day.

Shortly after, to no surprise, the door gently cracked open and I stepped in, calling for either of the Salvatores.

"Sam."

I turned at the sound of the voice and came face-to-face with an obviously drunk- and shirtless- Damon.

Trying not to stare too long at his admittedly breathtaking physique, I cleared my throat and looked up at him. He smirked, obviously knowing I had been admiring him, making my cheeks burn ever so slightly.

"What brings you by?" he asked.

"I just…wanted to check on you," I answered. "You look…"

"Dashing? Gorgeous?" he asked with a smirk. He loomed over me, leaning closer as he whispered, "Irresistible?"

"Wrecked," I told him honestly, placing my hands on his bare shoulders to push him back gently.

I had to ignore the feeling of fire surging through my veins when I touched him and keep my knees steady before they buckled beneath me. It didn't help that I made the mistake of making direct eye contact with him, getting sucked in to the icy blue irises that seemed to have a bizarre effect on me from the moment I met him.

He let out an almost inaudible gasp when I touched him and he stared down intensely at me, his face getting closer before I pulled it together at stepped back.

"You uh…" I began, struggling to find words. "I…I just wanted to see if you were okay, which…obviously you've been better."

He cleared his throat and looked away.

"I'm better than ever," he mumbled, clearly lying. "I'm glad you're here actually, I need your opinion on something."

Before I could ask what, he whisked me up to his room, setting me down in the center while he walked over to his wardrobe. He pulled out two button up shirts, one black and one dark gray.

"Now tell me which shirt one of the most eligible bachelor's in Mystic Falls should wear tonight," he requested.

Eyeing both of the shirts, I decided on the dark gray one.

"Most eligible bachelor," I repeated as he put the shirt I chose on. "No surprise."

Really, the thought of him being raffled off to someone…didn't sit well with me. It made my heart tighten and my stomach twist up in knots, actually. I couldn't help detesting the idea of someone else being able to- shut up. No. No Sam.

He smirked in his mirror at me as he paused buttoning up his shirt.

"Jealous, Miss Gilbert?"

My eyes widened.

"Why would I be jealous?" I sputtered.

"Because someone else may just get the honor of kissing me tonight," he teased.

I gaped at him like a fish before shaking my head clear. Speaking again, I moved the topic to something else.

"If I ask you how you're doing, will you lie to me again?" I asked solemnly.

His smirk dropped and he broke our eye contact through the mirror, going back to struggling to button his shirt. He turned to me and gestured to them.

"Help a guy out, will ya?"

I stepped toward him with a light sigh, grabbing the two ends of his shirt and buttoning from his drool worthy abs up.

"I didn't lie, by the way," he muttered after a moment.

"That was another lie," I called out, not looking up from his buttons. "If you don't want to talk about it, you don't have to. I just want you to know I'm here."

"What is there to even talk about?" he asked. "Elizabeth wasn't in the tomb. She's always known where I was and didn't care. That's that. Heartless bitch even left her own sister to rot for over a century, I really shouldn't be surprised that she left me behind too."

"That doesn't mean it doesn't hurt you," I replied finally looking up at him. "Look…Stefan told me that being a vampire…means things get magnified. Which means when you love someone as much as you loved Elizabeth…the pain hurts much more."

He stared down at me, his face tilting downward until his forehead bumped against mine.

"Guess if anyone knows heartbreak, it's you," he slurred a bit. "You know, if I had been around back then…when what's his face did what he did…I would have kicked his ass for hurting you."

"Knowing you, I probably would have asked you not to," I began. "But thanks for the offer."

I put my hand on his chest after I finished buttoning his shirt, leaving the top few buttons undone in his usual fashion.

"I know you keep saying you're okay," I said. "Even though you are…just know I'm here for you. No matter what."

He pulled back and stared at me with an unreadable expression for a few seconds before taking my hand and kissing my knuckles.

"I'm fine," he insisted. "Really."

My heart tightened some more at the lie.

* * *

At the raffle, I stuck to Chastity mostly while Damon was off flirting with the mayor. Not that I minded. I mean, he can definitely flirt with whomever he wants to. It's none of my business. Not. At. All.

Kelly Donovan showed up, which was a surprise since I didn't even know she was back in town, and she gave Elena and I both a big greeting hug. Though I felt overwhelmingly guilty when I first saw her on account of her having no idea that her daughter was dead, I was a bit put off by the way she treated Caroline, even calling her Matt's rebound girl.

It was Caroline's weak spot. Being compared to Elena and I hated that Kelly made her feel lesser than my sister when her relationship with Matt had been going well as far as I was aware.

When the raffle started, Chastity and I sat at a table with Jenna and Elena. Mrs. Lockwood moved down the line of bachelors, all of them telling a bit about themselves before she moved on to the next one.

I gave Jenna a sly smile after Alaric's turn and she blushed slightly, confirming my thought that there was absolutely something between them.

"Damon Salvatore," Mrs. Lockwood said, standing beside Damon now. "We don't have much on you."

"Well, I'm tough to fit on a card," he explained.

"Do you have any hobbies, like to travel?" she asked.

"Oh, yeah. L.A., New York. Couple years ago, I was in North Carolina. Near the Duke campus, actually. I think-"

He looked to Alaric.

"I think Alaric went to school there," he said. "Didn't you Ric? Yeah, cause I know your wife did."

I furrowed my eyebrows at the underlying tone in Damon's voice and the look on Alaric's face. It was like Damon was…taunting him? Why would he be taunting Alaric?

My confusion grew when I saw Elena stiffen at Damon's mention of Alaric's wife. What was going on?

"I had a drink with her once," Damon went on. "She was- she was a great girl. I ever tell you that?"

Alaric's jaw clenched while Elena got stiffer and all the color seemed to drain from her face.

"Cause she was delicious."

My jaw dropped. To anyone else, Damon seemed to be bragging about possibly sleeping with Alaric's wife and was now being creepy about it. To me…to Alaric…he was rubbing Alaric's face in the fact that Damon…drank her blood and…did what? Killed her?

"Are you okay?" I heard Jenna ask.

I followed her concerned gaze to Elena, who was getting up from the table saying that she needed air. I got up as well and followed her outside without hesitation.

"Elena!" I called to her after we got outside.

She paced around the sidewalk, breathing heavily like she was running out of air. I put both hands on her shoulders, now extremely worried about her.

"Elena, what's going on?" I asked her.

Why was she reacting this way?

"Elena."

She and I were joined by Stefan, who was looking at Elena with remorse and regret.

"Stefan, what is going on?" I asked him. "What was Damon talking about in there? What happened to Alaric's wife and what does Elena have to do with her?"

He looked to Elena, searching for an answer and I did the same seeing he wasn't going to answer without her opinion.

"Elena?" I said.

She sighed, shaking her head.

"Sam…I…I can't right now," she cried. "I just…"

She didn't even finish her sentence before pulling away from me and walking further down the sidewalk.

I stared after her, feeling both hurt and surprised that- for once in my life- my sister couldn't talk to me though she was clearly hurting.

Desperate, I turned to Stefan, who automatically opened his mouth, probably to tell me he couldn't tell me anything, before I cut him off.

"Please," I begged him. "Just…be there for her."

He closed his mouth and nodded sincerely.

"Go back in," he said. "We'll explain everything to you later."

With nothing else to do, I nodded and went back inside. I didn't know what was going on with Elena. What I did know was that whatever it was, Damon was responsible.

* * *

"You," Chastity hissed as soon as Damon came in to our view later. "You have some serious freaking explaining to do here."

I had explained the situation to her, everything I knew at least, and her poorly controlled angry response was the urge to cut Damon's tongue off and set him on fire. But not before he gave some answers.

"Down Lassie," Damon grumbled to her. "I want to talk to Sam alone."

Chastity looked to me and I nodded, determined to get answers from him. She sighed and hopped down from the high chair across from me, glaring at Damon as she bumped past him. He didn't pay her any attention, focusing solely on me with an almost desperate look in his eyes.

"What happened?" I asked seriously.

"I didn't know," he told me. "I really didn't."

"You didn't know what, Damon?" I asked, growing annoyed by my lack of background information on the situation.

He furrowed his eyebrows.

"How much do you know?"

"Evidently nothing," I laughed without humor. "I have no idea what's going on. What I do know is that Alaric's wife is missing, which apparently you had something to do with, and you were just rubbing it in his face. Also, it seems to have a big negative effect on my sister and for the life of me I cannot figure out why because she…"

I sighed and turned forward to face the table in my seat. Damon sat in the chair across from me, reaching his hands out to hold my own. I could feel his prying eyes on my face, begging me to look at him, so I granted him mercy and looked up.

"Alaric's wife's name was Isobel," he informed me. "And I just…I just found out that apparently…that's the name of Elena's birth mother."

I stiffened in shock.

"Elena's birth mother?" I repeated softly, staring back down at the table. "What- but she- I- she didn't…she would tell me if she found out who her birth mother was…"

Suddenly my eyes snapped back up to Damon.

"_You_ killed her?"

He blinked and his face contorted in to something that resembled remorse- a silent confirmation.

"Oh my god," I whispered, feeling tears well up in my eyes. "That's why she…"

I pulled my hands out of Damon's and stood up abruptly, gathering my things quickly.

"Sam-"

Damon stood with me, walking around the table and stepping in front of me. He grabbed my arms to stop me from leaving.

"Don't, please," I begged him.

"Sam, I need you to know that I didn't know who she was," he insisted. "I swear and I…I was stupid up there, alright? It was a stupid thing to do, I admit it. Just…know that I am genuinely…sorry."

The word was foreign to him in the genuine sense, I knew that. Even so, I couldn't appreciate it.

"I'm not the one you should be saying that to, Damon," I told him. "Please let me go so I can go talk to my sister."

With what I could swear was sadness in his eyes, he hesitantly released me from his grasp and I stepped around him, heading straight to the door. It all made sense now. Alaric's…dead wife, Isobel…she was Elena's birth mother. That's why she reacted the way she did.

Still. I couldn't believe she didn't tell me she knew and she…

She didn't tell me Isobel was only her birth mother.

* * *

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you," Elena said later that night.

We sat together in her room on her bed. I told her what Damon told me and she told me everything she knew about her adoption and her birth mother, which was only as much as Jenna could piece together from Dad's medical journals. Apparently our parents kept things under very tight wraps.

Alaric didn't even know Isobel had a baby in high school. Isobel never told him. What he did know was that she was killed by a vampire. Apparently that vampire had been Damon.

"No, it's okay," I assured her even though it wasn't completely true.

I was hurt Elena didn't tell me about finding out who her birth mother was and going to meet an old high school friend of hers. I was also a little surprised she didn't tell me about the man outside said friend's house and about his warning at the raffle. There was nothing I could do about it now, though. As usual.

"I just…I wanted to wait for the right time to tell you," she said toying with the cell phone she found after the compelled man outside the raffle was hit by the truck.

I watched it curiously, switching my eyes from it to her every couple seconds or so. An idea came to me then.

"What's the last number called on there?" I asked suddenly.

She looked at me in confusion for a moment before she opened the phone, clicking through until she found the recent calls. She furrowed her eyebrows then.

"There's…only one number going in and out," she said.

Without warning, she pressed the call button and put the phone to her ear while I watched in anticipation. Who would be on the other end of that line?

I knew the moment the line was picked up because whoever had answered stunned my sister. She looked like she recognized the voice on the other end, but at the same time shouldn't have been able to.

"Isobel," she questioned.

Wait what?


	16. There Goes The Neighborhood

**Fave Song- The Mess I Made by Parachute**

* * *

"So Elena thinks it was Isobel who answered when she called the creepy number?" Chastity asked once we reached our lockers at school.

"She said the woman's voice sounded like someone she knew but never met," I explained. "Wouldn't your first thought be birth mother?"

"If it was a man, my first thought would be soulmate," she sighed.

I smiled and opened my locker.

"So let me get this straight," she started. "Your sister…found out who her birth mother is- or was- and kept it a secret from you because…why again?"

"She wanted to find out all there was to find out before she told me," I informed her. "She wanted to make sure that there was no way Isobel was my birth mother too."

"At least that's what she says," Chastity muttered so lowly I nearly missed it.

I turned from my locker to look at her.

"What does that mean?" I asked her.

She sighed and shut her own locker before leaning against it and turning to me.

"It's just…everything that has happened up until this point, she's kept you up to date on. Her and Katherine looking alike, you and Elizabeth looking alike, you guys being adopted…she told you all of that right after she found out. Now suddenly she wanted all of the information before she told you? It just doesn't seem like she's telling you the truth. At least not all of it."

I raised an eyebrow.

"Why would she lie?"

"Maybe there's something she doesn't want you to know."

The bell rang and I closed my locker slowly.

"Just think about it," Chastity said before starting down the hall. She called over her shoulder, "I'll talk to ya later!"

I remained rooted to my spot, thinking over what Chastity had said. Why did Elena suddenly wait to get all of the details before telling me about Isobel? She wasn't hiding anything from me, I knew that.

I knew that…

* * *

**Third POV**

Damon walked in to the boarding house and was immediately greeted by the sensation of another presence in the house. A very familiar one at that…

He stepped further in and was entirely unsurprised by the sight of Pearl sitting with her back to him in the living room in front of Anna, who was looking at Damon with an apprehensive look on her face.

"Hello Damon," Pearl greeted him after hearing him come in.

"Haven't you heard of knocking?" he asked bitterly.

"An invitation wasn't necessary," she informed him. "I'm surprised that no living person resides here. Is it just you and your brother?"

"Yeah."

"How do you keep out unwelcome vampires?" Anna asked.

Damon shrugged with a smug smirk.

"Kill them," he said easily. He eyed them both for a moment. "Where is she?"

"I was just going to ask you the same," Pearl retorted. "I take it Katherine didn't come here after leaving us."

"She left?" Damon asked genuinely surprised.

"She stayed for a short while to get back to her full strength, then she left without a word. Shame since Frederick was so looking forward to see her again."

"I'm sure he would have preferred to see Elizabeth. Too bad she wasn't in the tomb."

Pearl sighed and looked down at Damon's comment.

"I truly am sorry, Damon," she apologized. "I'm sorry she left and I'm sorry you wasted so much time searching for her."

"You and me both."

"Though you seem to be doing a fine job replacing her," Anna commented.

Damon sent her a glare.

"Anna mentioned you've been spending a lot of time with…Samantha. Gilbert, as I understand," Pearl said.

"She's none of your business," Damon snapped, feeling pain even hearing her name.

She hasn't spoken to him since he not-so-subtly let it slip that he was the one who killed her sister's birth mother. He hated that he caused her any sort of pain.

"They're going through a rough patch I guess," Anna observed with a smirk. "Shame. She seems to do some good for you."

"Tell me why you're here before I lose my patience," he hissed.

After giving Damon her list of demands, an amused but also annoyed Damon let out a laugh.

"What exactly are you trying to achieve here?" he asked curiously.

"Mystic Falls is our home, Damon," Pearl replied. "They took that from us. Our land, our home. It's time we rebuild."

"Are you crazy? That was 1864. Wake up, woman! The world has moved on," Damon replied.

"As a reward for your help, I'm willing to give you what you want most," Pearl offered.

"I want nothing-"

"Elizabeth."

Damon fell silent, stunned by the offer, before he smirked.

"You wouldn't even know where she was. You've been under the ground for the last century and a half," he pointed out.

"Elizabeth, Katherine, and I were best friends long before we came to Mystic Falls, Damon," Pearl drawled. "I know how she thinks. I know her patterns. I know where to find her."

Damon wanted to laugh. A month ago, he happily would have done anything Pearl wanted in order to make her find Elizabeth. However, now…he could care less about where she was. He had absolutely no desire to see her ever again unless it was to kill her.

He frowned at himself. He didn't want to see Elizabeth, the woman he had been yearning over a century for, and he was hurt that Sam wasn't speaking to him.

This wasn't good.

* * *

**Sam's POV**

"So I'm going to ask you something," Adam asked in class suddenly. "And before you answer, just hear my explanation for it please?"

I blinked in surprise.

"Um…okay. What is it?"

"I was thinking that you and I should hang out," he began. "Would you consider that?"

"Um…"

"Right, the explanation. Well, before we dated, we were friends, right?"

"Right," I said slowly with a nod.

"And then I screwed that up royally. Thing is…I really miss having you in my life and I know that I'm not going to have another chance with you- not that I deserve one, really. So I was thinking…we should try the friend thing again."

I took a deep breath. True, Adam and I were great friends before we dated. Then he cheated on me and it kind of ruined all forms of the relationship we had, but the truth was that I really did miss having him in my life too. He may not have been the best boyfriend, but he was a really good friend.

And as weird as it was to think about now, he and Chastity were close at one time too. Then…he cheated on me and it ruined that relationship because she started hating his guts afterwards. I hated to think that their relationship got ruined because of something that happened between him and me, but if the situation were reversed and Chastity had a boyfriend that cheated on her…I'd probably hate him too.

But if she wanted to become friends with him, I wouldn't have any objections. I would probably try to get on good terms with him again too.

"Sure," I nodded after a couple minutes. "Chastity, you, and I can hang out tonight at the grill."

"Chastity, huh?"

"It'll be like old times," I convinced.

He sighed warily. "She hates me."

"She'll be okay."

He gave me a look and I bit my lip.

"After an hour she'll be okay."

He laughed.

"Sounds like a plan."

* * *

"I can't believe this," Chastity grumbled for the hundredth time as she passed by me.

We were at the grill with Adam, much to Chastity's chagrin. While Elena and Stefan left to go on their totally-awkward-but-not-supposed-to-be-awkward double date with Caroline and Matt, Chastity and I were playing a game of pool while Adam watched and I was getting my butt kicked by my best friend.

"How are you beating me when you missed your first three shots?" I asked Chastity.

"Because all the ones after that were awesome," she gloated with a grin.

"Or maybe you're just cheating," Adam sardonically said.

"No that's you in relationships," she snidely retorted.

I frowned at the two of them and sighed.

"Guys, please," I begged. "We're having a great time."

"So are they," Chastity said with a pointed look at the bar.

I looked over my shoulder to the bar where Kelly, Jenna, and Damon were clinking their shot glasses together before they threw them back.

"Wow, that's awkward," Adam commented. "A mother, an aunt, and an older brother walk in to a bar…"

"Don't even try to execute that joke," Chastity sighed. "It stopped being funny at 'mother'."

"Stop," I said, eyeing how close Kelly was to Damon.

While I was so incredibly…angry about what he did to Isobel, it was in the past. He's been changing since then, little by little, even if no one else could see. His taunting Alaric was a step back- and a giant step back, at that- but…he was changing.

"You okay?" Chastity asked me.

I looked at her and nodded, despite seeing the knowing look in her eye.

"It's good to see my aunt have some fun after all the stress," I said avoiding her question.

"Same doesn't go for them," Adam said looking over his shoulder.

Chastity and I followed his gaze to my sister, Stefan, Caroline, and Matt- who were all walking toward us. While Elena and Stefan seemed calm, Caroline had a clearly uncomfortable expression on her face and Matt couldn't stop his eyes from switching between Elena and Stefan.

"Awkward upperclassmen, 12 o'clock and approaching," Chastity muttered.

"Hey guys," Caroline greeted us brightly. "Can we join you?"

"Uh…"

Seeing the pleading look in not only her eyes, but Elena's as well, I glanced to Chastity and Adam. After seeing they seemed to be in agreement (for once), I turned back to the quartet and nodded with a smile.

"Of course," I said offering the stick to Matt. "See if one of you can beat Chastity."

* * *

"The drunken trio has migrated to a table," Chastity observed after Kelly let out a loud "whoo" after the last shot she, Jenna, and Damon took.

"Probably a good thing. One of them was bound to fall over at the bar," Adam said.

"At least they're having fun," Caroline sighed almost enviously, referring to the awkward double date I felt my friends and I were invading in on even though they had been the ones that asked to join us.

"They're wasted," Elena pointed out.

"Remember when Elena and Sam's parents busted us here after homecoming?" Matt asked with a smile out of the blue.

"Oh my god, yes!" Caroline laughed.

I raised my eyebrows in amusement and looked at my sister with a dropped jaw while she laughed with them.

"It was the first time I ever got drunk. I blame Matt!" Elena told me.

"They got seated at the next booth," Matt told Stefan, Chastity, Adam, and me.

"Oh and Matt had me pretend that I was choking so we could get away," Elena said.

"Dad jumped up to save you, didn't he?" I asked with a grin.

Elena and Matt both nodded with laughs.

"And I ran and slipped on the wet floor and bit it. In front of everyone," Elena giggled.

"That's why you were in so much trouble," I mused recalling when Elena was grounded for about two months. Jeremy and I wondered what she did, but our parents didn't say anything. They only told us to behave ourselves and we wouldn't have to worry about it.

I smiled and looked over at Caroline, who was no longer smiling or laughing. In fact she looked…really left out. I realized then that she probably did feel left out because here she was on a double date with Matt and he and Elena were going down memory lane and laughing together. Elena and Matt had history together. Caroline felt threatened by it.

"Well I'm going to go to the restroom," she excused herself suddenly.

"Yeah, Elena didn't you say you had to go to the bathroom too?" I asked pointedly.

Elena looked from me to Caroline, clearly not understanding.

"I have to pee," Chastity piped up.

"Classy," Adam huffed.

"Shut up. Let's go, Sam."

Elena, Caroline, Chastity, and I headed toward the bathroom. Chastity and I walked ahead of Caroline and Elena, giving them a chance to talk at least a little without us overhearing. After all, it wasn't really any of our business.

When we arrived at the bathroom door, we stopped.

"Should we let them go first? Because I really have to pee," Chastity whispered to me. "Can imagine how awkward that would be? Those two are trying to talk and there's just the sound of me peeing in the background?"

"If you have to go, then go," I encouraged her.

"I wanna let them- screw it. I'm going."

With that, Chastity quickly entered the bathroom and I heaved a sigh, following her in as Caroline and Elena approached and entered shortly after me.

* * *

I waited with my back against the wall for Chastity while Caroline talked to/at Elena.

"What are you doing?" she asked my sister.

"What do you mean?" Elena asked innocently.

"The whole point of this was to show him how much you care about _Stefan_," Caroline spat. "You know. Not for you to hopscotch down memory lane."

The toilet flushed and Chastity exited the stall with a clearly annoyed look on her face. I put a hand over my own, silently begging her not to say anything.

"I was just trying to make conversation."

"Try _less_," Caroline sneered at Elena.

"God Caroline, could you sound even more like an insecure, possessive, jealous little brat?" Chastity scoffed.

"Chastity, this has nothing to do with you," Caroline snapped.

"Jeez, with that attitude it's a wonder Matt's mom doesn't like you."

"Chastity!" I scolded.

She clearly hit a nerve as Caroline stormed out of the bathroom soon after and I immediately followed her out, calling after her. She walked back toward the pool tables and I followed, hoping she would slow down so I could comfort her, but I was stopped when a hand reached out and caught my arm.

"Elizabeth," an unfamiliar man said.

Fear suddenly filled me and I found myself feeling uneasy with the way the stranger and the woman behind him were looking at me.

"I'm sorry, you have the wrong person," I said sincerely, trying my best not to show them how fearful I was of them because of what they called me.

"Sam, come on," Caroline ushered, eyeing the man and the woman with concern.

"My mistake," the man said then, finally releasing me.

I walked toward Caroline, glancing behind me where Elena and Chastity were now looking around for Caroline and me. I saw the same man and woman's eyes widen when they saw Elena, so I quickly called to her.

"Elena, Chastity, over here," I waved to them.

They saw me and immediately came over to Caroline and me, I looked at Elena, feeling wary of the people still.

"What's wrong?" she asked me quietly.

I shook my head and mouthed 'hang on' to her. We walked casually back to the pool tables and I smiled when Matt nailed the shot he was going for.

"How's it going?" I asked the guys.

"Matt's cheating," Stefan answered, putting an arm around Elena.

"No need. I'm awesome," Matt grinned proudly.

"That's why you lost to me yesterday," Adam snickered.

"Hey," Matt sent him a playful glare. "You're just jealous."

I smiled at the two and casually slipped out my cell phone, feeling the same stranger's eyes on me as I started typing up a text message.

**That man over by the bathroom called me Elizabeth.**

I sent the message to Elena. After, I slid my phone back in to my pocket and resumed watching Matt line up for another shot.

"I take it Adam lost," I said referring to Matt's comment earlier while Elena read my message.

"Irrelevant," Adam huffed.

Stefan suddenly passed me, walking toward where I told Elena the man was, before stopping. I looked over, but instantly wished I hadn't. I didn't know what was more alarming- the fact that the man called me Elizabeth or the fact that they were gone and I had no idea where they went.

* * *

"So you didn't recognize him?" Stefan asked in the car afterwards. "You've never seen him before?"

"No," I shook my head.

"I've never seen him either," Chastity said. "How did I not sense him?"

"You weren't focused on that. You were relaxed," I comforted her. "Don't beat yourself up about it."

"If there's another vampire in town out to hurt you or anyone else, then it's something I have to worry about," she pointed out. "Man, Aunt Claire's gonna make me practice harder than ever now."

Elena pulled up the driveway of our house and sighed while Chastity and I got out of the car. I stepped up to Elena's window, giving her a small smile.

"Maybe we should stay here," she said worriedly. "We don't know who this man is or what he wants."

"No, you don't have to do that," I protested. "You guys aren't done with your double date. You deserve to have a night of fun, so go. Matt and Caroline are probably waiting for you."

"Are you sure?" Stefan asked concerned.

"Yes," I insisted with a smile. "I'll be fine. Promise. We'll just stay inside this nice cozy house where no vampire can get in uninvited."

"And where her witch best friend will protect her," Chastity said, throwing an arm around my shoulders. "We'll be perfectly fine."

"If you're sure…"

"We are," I assured Elena. "Have fun you kids. Don't do anything I wouldn't."

Elena and Stefan smiled softly before giving in. Chastity and I quickly went in the house, knowing they wouldn't leave until they saw us get inside safely. As soon as we were inside, I headed straight for the sofa and plopped down backwards.

"Sam," I heard suddenly.

I sat up and looked toward the kitchen where Jeremy was standing, looking totally and completely not suspicious. I frowned at him.

"Hey," I greeted him. "You okay?"

"Great," he clearly lied. "What's up? You're home early."

"Am I?" I asked. I looked to Chastity, who sent me a knowing look. "Do you have a girl here?"

"What? Why would I have a girl here?"

I gave him a look and he sighed. Footsteps came toward us and I heard a light giggle.

"Have we been busted?"

My face dropped. I knew that voice…

She entered the room and smiled sweetly at me.

"Hey Sam."

"Anna."

* * *

I abruptly stood up and stepped cautiously toward Jeremy.

"I-I didn't know you were still in town," I said to Anna. "Didn't- I could have sworn someone mentioned you were leaving with your mother."

"We decided to stay a bit longer," she said.

"You-"

"I gotta get going."

Before I could say anything else, she was gone. I let out the breath I had been holding unconsciously and looked at my brother, who seemed amazed and proud all at the same time.

"Jeremy," I called. "What is going on?"

"Nothing."

"Jeremy."

"I'm really tired. I'm gonna go get ready for bed."

He walked past me, pressing a kiss to my head, before heading up the stairs, leaving me astounded.

"That…didn't look good," Chastity commented.

No. It didn't look good at all.


	17. Let the Right One In

**Fave Song- All You Wanted by Sounds Under Radio**

* * *

Damon finished boarding up the broken window in the living room of the boarding house as the rain outside pounded against the makeshift window.

"I say we go to Pearl's, bust down the door, and annihilate the idiot that attacked us last night," he suggested, clearly angry about the previous night.

At the moment, Elena and I were at the boarding house after Stefan called and told us that there was something he and Damon needed to talk to us about. Though Elena didn't want any form of contact with Damon and I was a bit wary of seeing him too, Stefan's tone was more than enough to tell us that whatever it was they had to tell us was far more important than Elena's anger at Damon.

And sure enough, it was. Apparently the tomb vampires were out and living together in a secluded house in the woods with Pearl and Anna. Though I was already aware Anna was still in town with her mother, I had no idea they were housing 25 other vampires with a very nasty grudge against this town and the Salvatores.

Two of said vampires had attacked Stefan and Damon the night before and while Stefan managed to kill one, the other had escaped but something told me that the death of his friend at Stefan's hands would only make his thirst for revenge even stronger.

"Yeah and then what? We turn to the rest of the house of vampires and say 'oops, sorry'?" Stefan retorted sounding annoyed by Damon's impulsive suggestion.

"Let me just make sure I understand this correctly," I started. "The tomb vampires…including the ones who attacked you two last night…are living with Pearl and Anna and you-" I pointed to Damon. "-made a deal with her?"

"I can't believe you did that," Elena said shaking her head.

"It was more like a helpful exchange of information," he shrugged casually. "No need for you to worry your pretty little heads off about it."

"That 'helpful exchange of information' can endanger the lives of everyone town," I pointed out worriedly. "I mean, telling them who's on vervain and who isn't? Not to mention the fact that these are the vampires who were locked up over a century ago by the founding families who still live in this town."

I sat on the sofa and sighed while Damon pressed his lips together.

"Alright I can see why you'd be worried," he admitted, toying with the hammer in his hand. "But I didn't exactly have a choice, cute stuff. Pearl's…scary. Besides, she's gonna help me get Elizabeth back."

"Of course she is," Elena scoffed.

While Elena was clearly disgusted and annoyed, I couldn't help feeling…sad. Even after all that Elizabeth put him through…watching him, knowing exactly where he was for over a century and knowing he loved her as much as he di- does, then breaking his heart by not caring…he still wanted her back?

I cleared my throat and put on a small smile when Stefan looked over at me with concern.

"Damon gets what he wants, as usual, no matter who he hurts in the process," Elena sarcastically sneered.

"You don't have to be snarky about it," Damon smirked.

"I woke up this morning to learn that all the vampires have been released from the tomb. I've earned snarky," Elena shot back.

I pressed my lips together and shot her a guilty glance. That's right, she woke up this morning and found out that all the vampires were released from the tomb. I didn't even get a chance to tell her about Anna being in the house the night before or about Jeremy's weird behavior before and after she left.

Speaking of, I didn't even get a chance to talk to him about it. I knew he was entitled to have secrets- I was keeping a few of them from him myself- but…I knew what Anna was and she had threatened his life before. I couldn't help but feel a bit…concerned about her hanging around him.

"How long are you gonna blame me for turning your birth mother in to a vampire?" Damon sighed, sounding exhausted and bored.

"I'm not blaming you, Damon. I've accepted the fact that you're a self-serving psychopath with no redeeming qualities, even though Sam seems to think she sees a few," Elena replied sarcastically.

"Ouch," Damon fake winced.

"Okay," I said rising up from my seat. "This is not helping anything."

"Sam's right," Stefan agreed. "This isn't being very productive. We're gonna figure out a way to deal with Pearl and the vampires. Yeah?"

He gave a pointed look to Damon, who glanced at me and stood up to leave the room after I looked away. I couldn't really look at him…not when I knew that he was still yearning for Elizabeth.

* * *

A couple hours after Elena and I returned home, my cellphone started ringing, the screen telling me it was Damon. I picked it up and stared for a moment, thinking about whether or not I should answer.

Deciding that even if I was hurt for whatever reason that Damon still wanted Elizabeth, it would be childish not to answer his call when it could be something important. Especially considering the recently released tomb vampires.

"Hello?" I answered.

"Wanna open the door for me?"

I furrowed my eyebrows and moved to the front door, opening it in time for Damon to swiftly enter inside.

"What-"

I quickly hung up and put my phone back in my pocket.

"Where's big sis?" he asked me.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Elena asked annoyed from the top of the stairs.

"Is Stefan here?" he asked ignoring her question.

I looked carefully at him, noting the well hidden worry on his face and the slight panic in his tone.

"No," I answered immediately. "Why? Is something wrong?"

"He went out to the woods and didn't come back. I can't get him on his phone, I figured he was here," Damon responded as he looked at his phone.

Elena pulled out her own cell and immediately dialed Stefan's number, her face contorting with worry.

"It's going straight to voicemail," she said.

Sick panic and worry filled me and I looked to Damon.

"Damon…there's no sun out," I said. "You don't think…"

"On the contrary, that's exactly what I think," he replied grimly.

* * *

While Damon went to the house where the tomb vampires were residing, Elena and I were forced to wait in the car. Damon wasn't exactly thrilled about bringing us in the first place, worried it was too dangerous to bring us in to close proximity to vengeful vampires, but we insisted on coming anyway. We Gilbert girls could be stubborn when it came to the people we cared about, I guess you could say.

Shortly after he went up, we saw Damon running back to the car. I quickly exited the car to meet him while Elena snatched an umbrella and followed me to him.

"What happened?" I asked as soon as I was close enough to Damon.

"They have him. I can't get in," he grudgingly said.

Though he was an expert on wearing masks to hide what he was really feeling, I could see the worry for his brother etched on his face and the frustration over not being able to get inside to save him.

"Why not?" Elena demanded.

"They must have compelled the woman who owns the house," I said, figuring that they must have a human owned residence to keep other vampires out- namely the Salvatores.

"Exactly," Damon confirmed.

My eyes widened with realization. Damon- a vampire- couldn't get in uninvited. But a human could.

"I can get in there."

"No," Elena immediately shot down. "I'll go in."

"But-"

"It's too dangerous for you."

"It's not for you?"

"I'd rather it be me than you."

"Neither of you are going in," Damon intervened.

"But we can't just leave him in there," I argued. "They do want revenge, don't they? They blame you two for being locked in that tomb- they're going to kill him, aren't they?"

Damon didn't reply, but his silence along with the somber expression on his face was answer enough. I started toward the house.

"I have to go-"

"Sam," he said as he seized my arms firmly, but not painfully and stared down intensely at me. "You are not going in there."

The way he said it with so much emphasis, the way his icy blue eyes peered down at me with wild intensity…if I wasn't so worried about Stefan, I probably would have melted.

"It's Stefan," I whispered. "We have to do something."

He cupped my face gently, as if I were a fragile glass doll that he didn't want to break, and even though his hands were wet and cold from the rain, there was a raging fire to his touch that traveled through my body faster than any vampire could run.

"I know," he said. "But I don't know how to get him out and I am not letting you go in there and put yourself in danger. And Stefan wouldn't be all that thrilled if you went in either, so don't even try it."

He directed the last bit to my sister, who had been attempting to take advantage of our distraction to sneak past and go up to the house.

She huffed a frustrated sigh.

"I think I have an idea of who can help us," Damon said then.

I finally broke my eye contact with him, feeling my face heat up with the realization that we had been staring at each other that whole time. His hands dropped from my face and he cleared his throat.

"Who?" Elena asked.

* * *

"There isn't any other way?" I whispered as we walked quickly down the halls of school. "I mean other than dragging Mr. Saltzman in to all of this?"

"You two want Stefan back, right?" Damon asked.

"You killed him, Damon," I reminded hotly, still feeling pissed about the revelation that Damon killed the history teacher. Again. "That's reason enough for him not to help us. Not to mention it's dangerous."

"And he's got a nifty little magical ring that will bring him back to life," he pointed out.

Yeah, that was a thing. Damon killed Mr. Saltzman after he tried staking him for turning my sister's birth mother- and Mr. Saltzman's wife- in to a vampire. It was deduced by Stefan and Mr. Saltzman that it was the ring given to him by Isobel that brought him back.

"Well don't you look…alive," Damon said suddenly.

I realized that the man we were here for was just around the corner now.

"You can't hurt me," he reminded Damon.

"Oh, I can hurt you, all right," Damon smirked almost tauntingly.

"Okay, stop," I stepped in with Elena behind me. I looked to Damon. "Threats won't help."

He rolled his eyes while Elena stepped toward Mr. Saltzman, whose face appeared to soften a bit when he looked at Elena. I wondered if there was a resemblance to Isobel that he saw in her.

"Mr. Saltzman," Elena said. "We need your help."

* * *

In Mr. Saltzman's classroom, Elena and I stood in front of Mr. Saltzman's desk while he sat in his seat and Damon lounged by the windows. Elena appealed to Mr. Saltzman, telling him about the situation- also revealing our knowledge about him and vampires- and informing him that if she were allowed to, she would happily go in.

That was when Damon cut in.

"Their lives are valuable," he said pointing between me and Elena. "Yours, on the other hand…"

"Is also valuable," I said, shooting Damon a look.

"Stefan told us about your ring," Elena continued her plea.

"What about it?" he asked, twirling it on his finger.

"Let me recap-" Damon cut in. "You tried to kill me, I defended myself. You died. Then according to my brother, your ring brought you back to life. Am I leaving anything out?"

"Yeah. The part where I try to kill you again only this time I don't miss," Mr. Saltzman retorted coldly, rising from his seat.

"Mr. Saltzman," I stepped in front of him. There was already one Salvatore in danger. I didn't want to see another. "Please. We need your help."

"It's Stefan," Elena added.

He looked between us almost regretfully.

"I'm sorry girls," he said sincerely. "It's not my problem."

"I know it's not, but-"

"-but the woman in charge of the crowd could help you find your wife," Damon interrupted me.

My face snapped to him immediately. That was a surprise…

"You're lying," Mr. Saltzman immediately accused.

"Am I?" Damon challenged as he walked up behind me. "Why don't you ask her for yourself?"

Mr. Saltzman and Elena both had the same suspicious, but also hopeful expressions on their faces while I stared at Damon, hoping to God that he wasn't just bluffing to get Mr. Saltzman to help us because it was a really cruel false ray of hope to offer.

"Coward," Damon called when Mr. Saltzman didn't reply. "Come on, girls."

I reluctantly followed, wrapping a comforting arm around my sister. I knew she longed to meet her birth mother just like Mr. Saltzman longed to find his wife, but I wasn't going to pressure Mr. Saltzman to take the bait. Not with something this dangerous. We would find another way-

"All right! Wait."

Elena and I immediately turned back when Mr. Saltzman called after us.

"I'll go."

* * *

We reconvened back in the classroom, where Mr. Saltzman- or Alaric as he asked Elena and I to call him for now- pulled out a black bag and unrolled it, allowing it to reveal the inside contents which happened to be an assortments of weapons ranging from wooden stakes to wooden bullets.

I stared down at them, feeling ever so awestruck as well as nervous. Alaric is a history teacher…and he had all of this?

"Teacher by day, vampire hunter by night," Damon drawled, eyeing the weapons clearly meant for vampires.

"I have you to thank for that," Alaric replied.

"Are these supposed to be like tranquilizer darts?" I asked, holding up a silver dart filled with clear fluid. I swirled it around in the glass. "Vervain?"

"Yeah," Alaric nodded. "They work pretty quickly."

I nodded. Yes, these vampires had Stefan captive and were most likely torturing him, but I didn't want to kill anyone. It was slightly comforting that we had a way to get in without doing that, but knowing Damon…there'd be blood either way.

"Just get me in. I'll get Stefan out," Damon ordered quickly.

I looked at him as if he had grown a second head.

"How are you going to do that yourself?" I asked.

"Are you actually doubting me?" he teased.

"You know I have faith that you can take care of yourself," I began. "But against how many other vampires? All of which are older than you?"

"I'll be a little stealthier than taking them all on myself, hopefully."

Elena scoffed and shook her head, snatching up one of the darts.

"Whoa, what are you doing?" Alaric asked her.

"I'm going with you," she answered obviously.

"Uh…if you get to go, so do I," I chimed in.

"No. No. No. No," Damon chuckled shaking his head, taking the dart out of Elena's hands. "No way."

"You need me," Elena insisted. "I'll get in, you could distract them, and I'll get Stefan out- we can drop Sam off at home first."

"Huh?"

"And then we can go rescue Stefan."

"When did I get cut out? I just said I'm going in with you," I reminded her.

She was about to protest when Damon cut in.

"You'll get yourself killed," Damon said. "Both of you."

"Damon-"

"So when you get me in," he cut me off and began speaking to Alaric. "Get out as quickly as you can. I know how to sneak around where they can't hear me. You'll basically just be in the way."

He sent a look to Elena before looking at me.

"And one whiff of you and they'll all be all over you," he said.

"I understand Sam, but now is not the time to be the lone ranger," Elena argued.

"Fine, Elena gets to drive the getaway car, but you are not going in the house."

"You can't stop me! It's Stefan we're talking about here," Elena fought. "You don't understand."

"Oh I understand. I understand," Damon began teasingly. "He's the reason you live. His love lifts you up where you belong. I get it."

"You know what, none of this is helping," I spoke up finally. "We can't just sit here arguing about who's going in and who isn't."

I turned to Damon.

"You can get in and get out?" I asked. "Without attracting attention?"

He looked me straight in the eyes, all trace of humor gone with nothing but sincerity and determination left behind.

"Yes," he nodded confidently.

I took a deep breath and looked over at Elena.

"He's right," I told her. "He won't be able to focus if he's busy trying to make sure we're okay."

Elena looked down, her eyes filling with tears. I sighed and walked up to her.

"I hate it as much as you do, but I think we've proven once or twice that we're not all that good at sneaking by vampires," I referred to the time we tried sneaking out when our best friends were kidnapped along with us and held at the motel.

"Alright," she gave in eventually.

"If we're gonna go, we should go," Alaric said then almost awkwardly.

We listened and finally moved out.

* * *

The rain pounded against the car, the echoes of the sounds of water splashing metal being the only thing breaking the silence in the car as Elena and I waited while Alaric and Damon were at the house. I watched carefully while my sister eyed Alaric's bag, clearly tempted to go in after them even though she seemingly agreed with Damon earlier to stay in the car.

"You're going in anyway, aren't you?" I asked, already knowing her answer.

"I can't just sit and do nothing," she replied without denying it.

"You know I can't either, but you expect me to wait in here?"

"If you go in, you'll be in danger-"

"So will you."

"You heard what Damon said, though. One smell of you and they'll find you. We'll both be in danger then," she said.

I pressed my lips together. What was it about my blood that was so strong that it appealed to vampires the way it did that if I entered a house full of them, they would smell me in a second? Why did my sister think it was okay for her to go in and put herself in danger, but not me? Sure Stefan was her boyfriend, but he was one of my best friends. I didn't want to just sit her while he was in danger.

"Sam, please, do this for me," she begged. "Just stay here so I know you're safe."

I heaved a heavy sigh so she would think she won.

"Fine."

* * *

I gave it five minutes before I went after her. By the time I made it down to the basement, where I figured Stefan would be kept, Elena had already run in to a very irked Damon, whose irritation only increased when he spotted me.

"And right on cue," he groaned.

"Yell at me later," I said brushing past the two of them. "Save Stefan now."

We burst through a wooden door and I immediately recoiled slightly at the sight we were greeted with.

Hanging from a metal hook from the ceiling with his hands tied above his head with rope was Stefan, blood trailing down his bare chest and looking like he was on the brink of passing out or dying.

"Stefan," I gasped.

I immediately ran to him, barely registering the fact that there was another figure sitting in a chair with stakes in both his thighs across from him. Elena was by my side in an instant, touching his neck where blood seemed to come from before.

"Sam, Elena," Stefan groaned weakly. "You two shouldn't be here."

"They were supposed to wait in the car."

"And do nothing while you all put yourselves in danger, no thanks," I retorted.

Damon walked up to the stranger vampire in the chair, preparing a stake to kill him. He jumped back as far as he could go in the seat in fear.

"No," Stefan gasped out. "Not him."

"Whatever," Damon said, putting the stake away and returning to Stefan. "Let's get you down."

He went to undo the rope keeping him held up, but Stefan warned him that the ropes were soaked in vervain. Damon instructed Elena to pull the rope while I went over to the other vampire, holding my hand over one of the stakes keeping him pinned.

"What did you do?" I asked him.

"I tried to help him," he whispered painfully, looking at Stefan.

I glanced over at Stefan, who nodded in confirmation, before turning back. I wrapped my hands around the first stake, using all my strength to pull it out and wincing when he cried out. He let out a small sigh of relief before crying out again as I pulled out the second.

"Thank you," I said to him after both stakes were out.

"Sam," Damon called, earning my attention. "Let's go. You and Elena get Stefan out to the car and I'll distract the rest. I'm sure they smelled you by now."

I gave him a guilty nod before hurrying to Elena and Stefan, helping Elena partially carry Stefan out.

"Be careful," I called back to Damon.

"Hurry."

Elena and I hurried outside with Stefan. It had gotten darker out and the rain had stopped, now just leaving us with a cold dampness. We increased our speed to as close as to a run as we could get. All the while I hoped that Alaric made it back to the car safely and that Damon would get out alive.

* * *

After stumbling and falling numerous times, Elena and I finally got Stefan to the car. I was worried when I saw that Alaric wasn't there, but I figured he went back to help Damon and just hoped with every fiber of my being that they would both be alright. We got Stefan in to the passenger seat and climbed in ourselves, taking a second to breathe before Elena reached to start the car.

"Guys…" she whispered ominously.

I looked over and noticed that instead of the ignition, there was nothing but a hole and wires coming out. What…oh no.

Suddenly Stefan's window was smashed through, sending glass flying in to the car. Someone reached through and yanked Stefan out, pinning him back on the ground before attacking him.

"Stefan!" Elena and I shouted, hastily getting out of the car.

The man repeatedly punched Stefan while Elena and I looked on in horror. I looked around me, searching for something- anything- to use against the strange man who, if I wasn't mistaken, was the same one who thought I was Elizabeth.

My eyes finally found a vervain dart that Elena must have dropped on the way to the car and I bolted toward it, snatching it up just as the man lifted Stefan in the air and stabbed him with a branch.

Just as he went to stab Stefan again, I ran up behind him and stabbed his back with the dart. He froze and let out a gurgle of pain before collapsing to the ground unconscious. Elena and I ran to Stefan's side, with me still clutching on to the dart even though it was empty. I still felt safe just having it.

"Stefan," Elena cried.

He looked…like he was fading. He was clearly in a lot of pain and I wasn't sure how much blood he had lost prior to use getting him out of the basement, but it was obviously a lot. He was getting weaker and his face was becoming slack.

"No, Stefan, stay with us," I said, shaking him.

"Stefan, please!" Elena sobbed.

She looked up at me helplessly.

"Stefan, please, get up," I begged as the panic increased.

It magnified by thousands when I heard groans behind us, signaling that the vampire I vervained was regaining consciousness. I stood, now feeling more determined than ever, as I watched the vampire cautiously.

"Sam, he needs blood," Elena said in realization suddenly. "I can…I can give him some of mine."

"Okay," I agreed.

I trusted Stefan. I trusted that he could control himself and wouldn't hurt my sister and I knew that she felt the same. I just wanted to get them both out of here, even if I had to be the distraction so they had a chance.

The man groaned and began getting up. He looked directly at me with a carnal, almost psychotic sneer.

"You little backstabber," he grunted, pushing himself to his feet. "You sure you aren't Elizabeth?"

I shifted on my feet, pushing aside the fear.

"No," he continued, answering his own question. "You aren't. You're human. I can smell it. You smell…divine. I don't think I've ever smelled blood like yours before. Then again, I was locked up below ground for over a century. On behalf of your little friend there. All because Miss Elizabeth couldn't-"

He didn't get to finish his sentence before a blur of a man came between us and stopped, knocking the man's head off with a single swipe of his arm without hesitation or struggle. I wasn't able to contain the gasp I released and I heard Elena let out a similar cry of shock.

"Who are you?" Stefan groaned.

"No need to worry about me," the man replied almost robotically. "You're safe, that's all you should care about."

He looked over at me and smiled. I scanned his face, trying to see if I could place him anywhere in my memory. He had light hair that looked almost white under the moonlight and dark eyes. He was clearly a vampire, a strong one at that. He glanced back behind me at Elena and Stefan.

"Please. Get her home safely."

With that he disappeared.

I gulped and looked back at Elena and Stefan, who was now sitting up and looking much better than he did a few minutes ago. I joined his side across Elena and kneeled down, feeling a bit relieved that we were out of danger. For now at least. I would feel better once I was sure Alaric and Damon were alright too.

"Who was he?" Elena asked worriedly, looking a little pale from giving Stefan blood.

"I have no idea."

That was a popular answer lately.

* * *

After getting over the shock of having a stranger save us from the vampire that would have killed us and Damon and Alaric caught up with us, we finally got out and headed back to the boarding house. Damon and Alaric went to the grill almost immediately after to go to the bar while Stefan went up to get cleaned up. Elena still seemed pale, but she assured me that she was alright.

Stefan was healed, Elena's blood helped with a lot, and he promised that nothing was going to happen to him. He wouldn't lose control or anything, not that I thought he would in the first place. Stefan was Stefan. He wasn't a monster.

Shortly after, Jeremy called and asked if I was with Elena. After I told him that she was, he broke the news to me.

Vicki was dead. Her body was found out in the woods.

We didn't wait. Elena and I had rushed straight to Matt's house after, where Jeremy, Tyler, Caroline, Sheriff Forbes, and Kelly all were.

When we arrived at the house, we rushed up to the door and Elena rang the doorbell. Sheriff Forbes was the one who opened the door, giving us a sad smile. Kelly, who was sitting on the sofa in the living room, sobbed harder when she saw us come in, her tears leaving trails of mascara and eyeliner down her face.

While Elena went to comfort her, I looked in to the hall where Matt was standing. His eyes were already wet and I could tell he was on the verge of a breakdown.

"Matt," I whispered, rushing toward him to wrap my arms around him.

He sobbed in my hair, hugging me tightly. I didn't say a word, just allowed him to let it all out as I hugged him.

Not long after, we were joined by Elena. I released Matt and allowed Elena to hug him herself.

* * *

On the way home, I rode quietly in the back while an equally silent Elena and Jeremy sat up front.

As I stared out the window, I reflected on all that happened with Vicki. Damon attacked her, he turned her, she attacked Elena and Jeremy, and Stefan killed her. Damon buried her out in the woods and then compelled Jeremy to forget what he saw, forget that she was a vampire, and believe that Vicki ran away as per Elena's request.

Now Caroline discovered her body and everyone knew she was dead, but no one knew why. We could say drug overdose, but she was buried. No one would ever believe it.

Matt's sister and Kelly's daughter was dead and they didn't know why.

Jeremy didn't know why.

There were just so many lies.


	18. Under Control

**I know I'm really getting chapters out fast now. I have two reasons: 1.) I want to make up for being gone for so long and try to get to where I should have been had I updated as much as I wanted to. 2.) My dads took my son to Disneyland and I have the week off of work! :D Plenty of time for me to relax and get some writing done!**

**Anyway, thank you all for all of the support and your wonderful comments! I know there's been a lot of questions about Sam's protectors and as much as you wanna know who they are and why they're protecting her, it's not something that will be addressed in this story. Season 2's story will have all the answers about them, but it'll be stingy on answering other questions that will arise in the remainder of 'Fix You'.**

**Alright, lovelies, I'll get out of your hair now. Please enjoy this next chapter and those still to come!**

**Love, Kathy.**

**Fave Song- Brick By Boring Brick by Paramore**

* * *

"Jeremy! We're gonna be late!" I called up the stairs to Jeremy, hoping he would hurry down so we could leave for school.

"He down yet?" Elena asked coming up behind me to the front door.

"No," I sighed.

Jenna scrambled toward us, Elena's thermos in hand. She smiled as she held it out to her.

"Forgot this," she said.

"Thanks," Elena took it. She looked to me. "Let's just wait for him in the car."

"Alright," I shrugged, moving away from the bottom of the stairs.

Elena opened the door and started out, only to stop short to avoid bumping in to someone. And that someone was…

"Uncle John?" I said surprised.

He smiled upon seeing us, lowering the hand he was most likely going to knock with.

"Samantha! Elena!" he greeted us.

Elena's face had morphed from "looking forward to the day" to forced happiness.

"Uncle John," she greeted with an unenthusiastic, fake smile. "Hi."

To be perfectly honest, Uncle John…was not the most popular character around. As Dad's only brother, he was always welcome around as family, but neither Dad or Mom ever seemed all too thrilled to see him- similar to my siblings and Aunt Jenna.

And why wouldn't they? Whenever he was around, he often talked down to people and made them feel lesser and frequently criticized people, whether it was subtle or direct.

Uncle John then looked to Jenna, who was still behind Elena and me.

"Jenna," he greeted.

"John, you made it," she said with obvious distaste.

"I said I'd be in by noon," he reminded as he entered the house, swiftly walking past Elena who gave me an annoyed eye roll.

"Oh, what you say and what you do are typically two very different things," Jenna said with a slight glare at his back.

Jeremy descended down the stairs then, frown growing on his face when he saw who was here.

"Uncle John, what's up?" he greeted, also none to pleased.

See? Not the most popular guy.

"Hey," Uncle John greeted Jeremy.

Jeremy merely slapped his shoulder in greeting before passing by, walking out the door without a glance back. I followed quickly after him, saying a quick 'see ya later' to Uncle John.

"Jer!" I called after him.

Jeremy stopped halfway to the car before looking back.

"What?" he answered, sounding the slightest bit annoyed.

"I wanted to talk to you," I said a bit taken aback by his tone.

"About what? Vicki? I'm fine, don't worry."

"It's not just about that," I told him, stopping him as he turned back to walk to the car. "It's…about Anna too."

He froze and looked at me weirdly.

"What about Anna?"

Before I could respond, Elena breezed up to us and urged us to hurry to the car. Jeremy sent me one last strange look before following her.

I decided last night. I was tired of the lies, I couldn't take it anymore. It wasn't right and it wasn't fair. So…I needed to tell Jeremy the truth. At least part of it.

* * *

"So you want to tell Jeremy the truth?" Chastity asked as she and I walked together through the halls. "About time."

"I'm tired of lying to him," I sighed. "It's too dangerous and he deserves to know so he can make decisions for himself. Especially when it comes to Anna."

"But didn't you say you had a feeling he already knew about her?"

"Yeah, but something tells me she didn't exactly tell him everything- including the part where she used him as leverage to free her mother," I replied. "I mean, I understand she was desperate to get her mother back. Truth be told, I probably would have done anything to get Elena or Jeremy back if they were locked in the tomb but…"

I trailed off. But what? I wasn't any different. If Anna was concealing the truth from Jeremy, it was most likely to protect him. Didn't that sound familiar?

"Having second thoughts?" Chastity asked then.

"No," I shook my head. "Jeremy still deserves to know. We…lied to him about Vicki. Damon compelled him. Isn't that taking his choice away? And I went along with it…"

"Because you wanted to protect him," Chastity reminded me. "You wanted to protect him. You let it happen because…because it seemed like the safer option to hide the truth. Because you didn't think he'd understand or worse, he would think he did understand and he would draw the wrong conclusions, but you of all people know that sometimes…the truth is more dangerous than any lie."

I furrowed my eyebrows as she spoke. Something told me we weren't just talking about Jeremy anymore…

She sighed and shook her head.

"Tell him the truth. Even about me and Bonnie," she encouraged. "If you think that's the right thing to do."

I nodded, watching her suspiciously. Something was wrong with her. But what?

* * *

"Hey," Elena said entering my room the next day. "Can I talk to you for a second?"

"Uh…of course," I replied. "What's up?"

She came over and sat on my bed across from me, clearly shaken.

"What's wrong?"

She took a breath.

"Something is wrong with Stefan," she informed me.

I tilted my head in confusion.

"What does that mean?"

She told me about the night before, they were talking in her room and eventually began a make-out session, which was interrupted when Stefan's fangs came out to play. He had thrown himself across her room against the wall with his face still morphed in to that of…well a vampire's.

"What did he say?" I asked when she finished.

"Nothing," she said. "I mean, he apologized and told me he loved me, but he left right after. No explanation whatsoever."

I furrowed my eyebrows in deeper confusion. That wasn't like Stefan at all. Sure, he had always had the lingering fear that he lose control and hurt Elena, but it had never been that bad. As far as I knew, he never…well vamped out with her. He was always in pretty good control of himself.

"Maybe…something you were talking about distracted him," I suggested.

Although she hadn't told me what they were discussing, I didn't want to pry and find out. If she wanted me to know, she would have told me.

"We…I don't think so," she shook her head. "We were talking about…Jeremy."

I immediately straightened up.

"What about Jeremy?"

She opened her mouth to reply, but got cut off by the doorbell. She winced.

"I forgot to mention I resorted to desperate measures for this whole Stefan thing," she said.

She led the way down the stairs to the front door, which she opened to reveal a smirking Damon. I stared in surprise.

"You called him?" I asked my sister.

"You ask, I come. I'm easy like that," he said stepping past Elena in to the house.

_I'm sure_, I thought shaking my head with the tiniest smile at him.

Elena shushed Damon, gesturing to Jeremy sitting in the kitchen eating a bowl of cereal. Now would have been the perfect opportunity for me to talk to him, but now Damon was here and there was a small Stefan issue that needed to be handled.

"Let's go to my room," I whispered to Damon and Elena.

Elena was the first to go up while I led Damon, but he stopped in front of the stairs and looked over at Jeremy.

"No, Sam, I will not go to your bedroom with you," he dramatically said loudly.

I rolled my eyes.

"Elena is going to be in there too," I said just as loud so Jeremy wouldn't try to kill him.

Let's just say my brother could be a little protective when it came to certain types of guys and me.

"Threesome? I didn't know you were in to that stuff," Damon smirked back.

I gaped at him and felt my cheeks heat up.

"You…"

"But to be perfectly honest, I would much prefer it if we didn't have any company," he winked.

I rolled my eyes then and turned my back on him, continuing up the stairs.

"Pervert," I muttered, hearing him chuckle as he followed me up.

Damon let out a sigh upon entering my room and looked around with a smile.

"Just like I remember," he said.

"Stop messing around," Elena ordered, sounding and looking annoyed.

"You've never been in here," I pointed out.

Damon made a face suggesting otherwise and simply shrugged before walking over to my bed and plopping down, picking up the stuffed puppy and holding it to his chest. Despite the fact that my bed was queen sized, Damon's feet would have easily hung over the end of the bed, had he not been sitting up halfway against the headboard.

"Did you two know that your uncle's been kicking it with the Founder's Council?" he asked after making himself at home.

"Wait what?" I said. "Uncle John…knows about vampires?"

I suppose that shouldn't be a surprise…

"Yep," Damon said, popping the 'p'.

"Perfect," Elena said sarcastically. "We'll just add it to the growing list of how everything is falling apart."

Damon squinted at Elena suspiciously then.

"What's up with you?" he asked. "I would expect a call from Sam, not you."

Elena shifted on her feet, placing herself at the foot of my bed. Her face was contorted with worry. What happened with Stefan the night before really bothered her…

"I'm worried about Stefan," she finally declared. "Hey says that everything's okay, but he's clearly struggling."

I watched Damon's face for a reaction and was surprised when I didn't get one. He didn't look the least bit surprised or disturbed.

"How long is it going to take before he's back to normal?" Elena asked.

"Few days, give or take," Damon replied easily.

"It's been a few days."

"Give then, I don't know."

Damon got off my bed and handed me my puppy as he walked by me toward my dresser.

"If he's struggling, we should help him," I said. "What can we do for him?"

"What's the big deal?" he asked me suspiciously. "Why so worried?"

"He's not himself, Damon," Elena answered.

"Well, maybe his problem is is he spent too long _not_ being himself," Damon retorted as he started digging through my underwear drawer.

I sighed when he pulled out a lacy pink bra from Victoria's secret- Chastity's birthday gift to me- and walked over to him, snatching it out of his hand. I put the bra away and shut my drawer.

"You mean with the blood?" I questioned, ignoring the smirk he gave me. "He spent too long avoiding drinking human blood and now…now what?"

"Now he's struggling with blood lust because he didn't bother to control it before," Damon answered. "He spent too long trying to reign it in and fight his nature."

"He's not you," Elena snapped. "Not even close."

"Well he doesn't want to be me," Damon said not the least bit offended. "But that doesn't mean that deep down inside he's not."

He turned his head back to me and it was only then that I realized just how close he was to me. So close that I could feel his body heat radiating on to me. I could see every fleck, every shade of ice and sky blue decorating his eyes and I could see the reflection of my face staring back at me.

I let out a quiet breath I wasn't even aware that I had been holding when he stepped back. My body trembled with the loss of the warmth and my knees buckled, but thankfully didn't give. Elena looked at me, unhappiness clear on her face while I pretended not to notice.

How could someone have so much effect on another person?

* * *

I lay on my stomach on my bed, flipping to the next page of 1984 and taking mental notes for English.

I had just started on the next page when I was distracted by Jeremy knocking on the door.

"Hey," he greeted. "Can I…talk to you for second?"

"Yeah," I said sitting up on my bed to make room for him.

He came over and sat on the edge, looking at me with a small smile.

"Where'd you and Elena go off to anyway?" I asked curiously.

"Just went for a walk," he replied. "I uh…she told me."

I felt myself tense and I'm sure it showed.

"Elena…told you? Told you what?" I questioned.

Had she told him about Vicki? About vampires? That she had Damon compel him?

"About how she was adopted," he clarified.

I sighed softly.

"Oh," I said. "Is…that all she told you?"

"Well she also told me that you found out about yours."

I nodded. So she didn't tell him about…alright.

"How are you taking it?" I asked.

"I should be asking you that," he chuckled. "It took me by surprise, yeah, but…"

He seemed to struggle with his words and I looked at him curiously.

"But what?" I asked.

He sighed and smiled a little.

"I just…can't believe Mom and Dad never told you guys."

I gave him a small smile and put a hand on his shoulder.

"I get it," I told him. "They raised us, treated us like their own daughters, and…we are their daughters. It must have been hard to even think about how they would tell us. I know it was for Jenna. Sometimes…the truth is hard."

Boy, was it ever hard.

Jeremy smiled wider and wrapped his arms around me.

"Doesn't mean that you're not my baby sister," he chuckled. "My ridiculously short baby sister."

"Way to ruin a moment."

* * *

At the 150th Founder's Anniversary celebration, I stood between Jeremy and Aunt Jenna while Elena went up to Stefan, who was standing at the bar and was clearly not in a sober state of mind. I watched him carefully, noting that he really wasn't acting like himself at all. He was drunk, he was a little wobbly, and he was smirking in a way that made him look more like his brother than ever.

"Well this is a little concerning."

I flinched at the sound of said man's voice from beside me, wondering when Jeremy and Aunt Jenna had moved and he came. He watched with me as Stefan went up to the DJ and spoke to him.

"I thought you were the one who said that we shouldn't be worried," I said to Damon.

The song then switched from the classical tune that had people snoring to something uplifting and easy to dance to. Stefan went out to the dance floor and Kelly sauntered over to him, probably relieved about the change of music and thankful Stefan was responsible.

"That was before I entered an alternate universe where Stefan was fun," Damon replied to me.

Elena walked up to us, glancing back at Stefan dancing with Kelly every couple seconds or so, and leaned to Damon.

"Is he gonna be okay?" she asked him.

"Eventually," Damon shrugged. "One way or another."

That was comforting…

* * *

I was pulled suddenly from Tina Fell on to the dance floor, feeling myself be twirled first before I was pulled in to Stefan's arms. I let out a surprised, breathless gasp once I made eye contact with him.

"Hey stranger," I greeted with a smile.

"Hey yourself," he said. "_Please_ dance with your sister's alcoholic vampire boyfriend?"

"I don't have much choice in the matter, do I?" I teased, gesturing to how I had already been pulled out to the dance floor.

"No you do not," he grinned, spinning us around again.

I laughed and Stefan twirled me, spinning me out and causing me to bump back in to someone.

I turned immediately with a gasp.

"Oh I'm so sorry," I apologized the guy. "That was totally my fault. I can be pretty clumsy."

It was a big quirk of mine. Honestly, I was amazed I could even have been a cheerleader. I never knew where I found that balance or where it went any other time.

The guy leered down at me. "Then get off the dance floor."

My face dropped at his reply. Alright, there was no need to be so rude.

Suddenly Stefan stepped beside me, glaring at the guy.

"That's no way to talk to a lady," he scolded darkly.

The guy scoffed, "Whatever."

He turned to walk away, but Stefan seized his arm tightly. I jumped at how hard he yanked him back.

"You need to apologize," Stefan said in the tell-tale mesmerizing tone of compulsion.

The guy looked at me, his face expressionless.

"I'm sorry," he said flatly and robotically.

"It's okay," I told him. I looked to Stefan. "It's okay."

Stefan pressed his lips together and nodded shortly, releasing the guy. He took one partial step before Stefan pulled him back again just as harshly as before.

"Stefan," I protested.

"Now say it like you mean it," he instructed the man.

Said man looked to me again and repeated his apology, adding 'really, really' to it but in the same tone as before.

"Now walk away," Stefan said, giving the man a shove.

I stared at him, stunned by his reaction. When he turned back to me, I gave him a small smile.

"You alright?" he asked concerned.

"Yeah," I assured him.

But was he?

* * *

Afterwards, I decided to find Damon and Elena. Since Elena would be a bit tricker to track down, I decided to find Damon first since I had a pretty good idea about where he was.

Sure enough, at the bar.

"So your brother's acting a bit…not like his usual self," I said as soon as I was at his side, referring to the fact that Stefan was compelling every other person he came across.

"Haven't noticed," Damon briskly said. "I've been too preoccupied with yours."

I jerked my eyes to his in alarm.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Jeremy's been asking questions about Vicki Donovan's death," he answered quietly.

"He was told it was an overdose," I replied before sighing. "I was afraid this would happen. She was buried."

"Exactly and who would do that, Sheriff?" he mocked Jeremy. He raised his hand and pointed to himself. "I know, I know! Me!"

He turned back to his drink and shrugged.

"I mean I could compel him, but he's wearing vervain," he added.

"No," I instantly said. "I don't even like that he was compelled in the first place."

"If he keeps asking questions…"

"Damon," I sighed. "I understand where Elena was coming from when she asked you to compel him, but honestly…I don't think it was the right thing to do. And I have been wrestling with myself every day since because I feel guilty about taking his choice from him. I can't keep lying to him anymore."

Damon eyed me for a moment.

"Are you willing to take that risk?" he asked. "There's no going back after that. Unless, of course, I compel him again."

I gave him a look and he shrugged.

"He deserves the truth," I said. "It's safer that way. Especially since Anna is still in town and he seems to really like her."

"Are you actually making an big, executive decision here without your sister's consent?" he teased as he reached over to the flower vase.

He pulled out the reddest rose of the bunch and twirled it in his fingers as he inhaled its scent.

"I'm gonna talk to her about it," I replied. "At some point."

"At some point before or after you talk to your brother?"

I didn't reply and he shrugged once more.

"If I do talk to him…tell him everything…would that be okay with you?"

"You're asking me?" he asked surprised.

"It's your secret. Yours and Stefan's."

He hummed.

"It's your choice," he said, handing me the rose. "If you trust him, I can try. But don't say I didn't warn you."

I slowly took the rose from him, holding it delicately in my hand. He stared at me for a bit longer before dropping his hand from the rose and leaving. I let out yet another breath of air I hadn't been aware I was holding.

* * *

I found Jeremy sitting by himself in one of the rooms, staring at the blazing fire in the fireplace.

"Hey," I greeted him.

"Hey," he responded without looking at me.

I stepped further in to the room, sitting slowly in the arm chair beside the sofa he was on.

"I uh…I heard you and the Sheriff had a talk about Vicki."

"Elena already covered it," he said, clearly bothered by whatever she said. "She thinks Vicki ODed. But…I feel like she knows something else and isn't saying anything to me."

He finally tore his eyes away from the fire and looked at me intently.

"What about you?" he asked. "What do you think?"

He was testing me. He already had an idea of what happened and he suspected Elena and I both knew, he just wanted to see if I would tell him the truth.

With a sigh, I decided to honor my word. Enough was enough.

"We should talk," I told him.

* * *

I told him everything. From the first attack on Vicki to everything happening now. He knew about Vicki being turned, her attacking him and Elena, Stefan killing her to save them, Damon compelling him so he wouldn't remember what happened, the tomb vampires, Chastity and Bonnie being witches, Isobel, Alaric, Anna, Pearl…Katherine and Elizabeth. Everything.

Once everything was out in the open, the sick knotted feeling left my stomach and weight lifted off my shoulders. I felt like I could really breathe, but there was still the anticipation of how he would react. Would he be angry at me for keeping this all from him for so long? For going so long knowing that Damon compelled his memories away?

He stayed quiet for so long with a blank look on his face as he stared down at the ground. I knew it was a lot to process, hell I was still processing a lot of it to this day.

Finally he looked up at me in anger.

"Elena lied to me," he stated. "She told me that if she knew anything else, she would tell me. She lied to me."

"Jeremy, she just wanted to protect you," I defended. "I know what she did was wrong, but she only did it because-"

"It was wrong because it wasn't her choice to make," he snapped. "It should have been mine. She took that from me. She lied to me about Vicki, she covered it up, and she-"

He stood up abruptly and stormed out. I immediately jumped up and rushed after him.

"Jeremy!" I called.

He breezed through the dance floor and I struggled through the crowds of people after him, stopping when I lost him in the front. I sighed in regret and looked at the people around me. They all were looking in one direction, so out of curiosity I followed their gazes.

I gasped at the sight. Shattered glass, a knocked over table, and Elena trying to clean up a bleeding Matt. Rushing over, I called to them.

"Elena!" I said. "Matt, what happened?"

"Sam," Elena said.

"I'm fine," Matt insisted as I scanned over his face.

"You're bleeding, you're not fine," I said finding a napkin and wiping some of the blood off his face gently.

"Considering what just happened, the blood is the last thing bothering me," he mumbled.

"Matt," I whispered. "What happened?"

Elena looked at me and I could tell by her face that whatever happened had something to do with Kelly. I let out a sigh and continued helping her clean Matt's face. I really hoped this time would be different with her.

* * *

"Mind if I steal you for a second."

It wasn't a question and Damon didn't even wait for a response before he steered me from the hall where I was waiting for Elena to return from grabbing her jacket so I could tell her about my talk with Jeremy. He led me in to the room where an audience of people stood before the mayor and Uncle John, who was preparing to ring the old bell brought in.

"What are we doing?" I asked.

Damon stopped us, putting me beside Alaric and placing his hands on his shoulder.

"I want you both to do me a favor," he said. "Look at him."

"Look at who exactly?" Alaric drawled.

"Town's favorite son. Notice the ring?"

I squinted and looked at my uncle's right hand where a familiar silver ring rested on his ring finger…

"Oh, that looks like mine," Alaric noticed, clearly not understanding where Damon was going.

"Yeah, and that would be a big coincidence if he didn't just come back from the dead five minutes ago," Damon whispered urgently.

"Came back from the- you-"

I didn't even finish my sentence. Of course Damon killed Uncle John. Uncle John was Uncle John and Damon was Damon. Impulsive and has no problems with killing people who piss him off, which Uncle John surely did. That didn't make it okay, however.

"Where the hell did you get that ring, Rick?" Damon asked.

"Isobel, my wife," Alaric answered.

"Isobel," I repeated. "As in…Elena's birth mother who…apparently gave birth to her under my Dad's medical care?"

"Their father, the esteemed Dr. Grayson Gilbert- John's brother?" Damon added.

"You think John knew Isobel?" Alaric asked, now as intrigued as I was.

"I think John knows a lot of things," Damon answered.

Great.

* * *

**Third POV**

After sending Sam home with Elena and Jenna, Alaric and Damon followed John outside to confront him after- of course- promising to tell Sam about the outcome and after Damon promised not to try to kill him again.

"Goin' somewhere? Hmm?" Damon asked John as soon as they were outside.

"Never like to be the last one to leave a party. It's too desperate," John replied haughtily. "You here to kill me again?"

He looked at Damon flatly.

"Or are you gonna let Mr. Saltzman do your dirty work?"

"Okay, you obviously know who I am," Alaric said when John looked at him.

They stopped, Alaric and Damon standing on either side of John while he stood with his hands in his pockets, feeling and looking completely unthreatened.

"I do," he confirmed. "Alaric Saltzman, the high school history teacher with a secret."

"Sure know a lot for someone who just got to town," Damon drawled while Alaric looked slightly taken aback that John knew who he was.

John smirked and stepped between the vampire and hunter/history teacher.

"More than you can imagine, Damon," he said, passing by the two. "My knowledge of this town goes beyond anything that you-" he looked from Damon to Alaric "-or you or the council knows. So if you were planning on some clever high-speed, snatch-ring, vamp kill move, know that if I die everything I know goes to the council. Including the fascinating little tale of the original Salvatore brothers and their present-day return to Mystic Falls."

While Damon stared in annoyed wonder at John, Alaric stepped forward and demanded, "How'd you get that ring?"

"I inherited one. My brother Gray, the other," he began, holding up his hand with the ring. "This is his. And I wouldn't have given mine to Isobel had I known she'd hand it over to another guy."

"So you did know her?" Damon smirked knowingly.

"Who do you think sent her your way when she wanted to become a vampire?" John retorted.

"_You_ sent her?"

"Guilty," John cheekily said. "Why, did you think someone else sent her?"

Damon shrugged so John continued.

"Maybe Elizabeth Pierce?"

The name sent Damon reeling and instant hatred filled him, but he didn't show it.

"How do you know about Elizabeth?" Damon asked.

"How do I know anything, Damon?" John deflected.

"What do you want?"

"So many questions," John shook his head.

"And one more, if you know about Isobel then you know she's Elena's birth mother," Damon started.

John made a cocky face proving Damon right. "Your point?"

"She's only _Elena's_ birth mother," Damon went on. "What about Sam?"

"What of her?"

"Who are her birth parents?"

John merely looked from Damon to Alaric.

"It was a pleasure meeting you, Rick. I heard a lot about you."

With that, he left the two men behind more confused and stunned than ever.

* * *

**Sam's POV**

Back at home, I made my way up to Jeremy's room to check on him. He was sitting at his desk, his back facing me, when I came to his room. I hesitated in the doorway.

"Jer," I called.

He whirled around in his chair and sighed.

"Hey," he greeted quietly.

"Are you…how are you?"

He looked down.

"Processing. Still," he said. "I read Elena's diary. Got everything from her perspective."

I looked at him in surprise. That was a total invasion of privacy, but…I understood why he did it.

"And?"

He looked back up at me.

"And I'm pissed," he admitted angrily. "I'm pissed she did this. I'm pissed she kept it from me and lied about it all. I'm pissed she covered up Vicki. I'm pissed at her and…you told me the truth, but I'm still pissed you kept it from me in the first place."

It hurt that he was so angry at me, but I completely deserved it. I lied to him and I hid things from him. I didn't blame him for being angry. That didn't make it hurt any less.

"What can I do?" I asked. "To make this better for you?"

"I just…I need time," he said. "Just give me time."

"Okay," I nodded. "Just…know that I really am sorry, Jeremy. For everything."

"Yeah," he sighed, sounding less angry. "I know you are, Sam."

Backing out of his room, I turned and walked toward mine. I wanted to tell Elena, let her know Jeremy knew everything, but I could hear Stefan and her talking in her room and decided to leave it for tomorrow.


	19. Miss Mystic Falls

**Fave Song- All I Need by Within Temptations**

* * *

"Chastity!" I called, running up behind Chastity in the halls at school. She stopped to let me catch up to her. "I heard Bonnie's back."

"Yeah," she confirmed. "I was just on my way to find her and say hi. But…looks like your sister found her first."

We stopped outside, watching Elena and Bonnie talk in the courtyard. I smiled brightly before leading Chastity over to the two.

"Bonnie!" I called out. "Hey."

She seemed to force a smile when she saw me.

"Hey, Sam," she said quietly after we made it up to her. "Chastity. Good to see you both."

"How are you doing?" I asked instantly. "I know you had a lot on your plate. Especially given…"

I trailed off, knowing she knew I was talking about the tomb vampires.

"Honestly, I wish I didn't know," she replied shortly. "It was hard with Grams, the tomb spell failing just made me wanna come home even less."

"I hope you understand why I called," Elena said. "I just wanted you to know before you came home."

"Yeah, I understand. I just wish I didn't know."

I looked at her sympathetically. She was heartbroken that her Grams died, but now she felt it was for nothing because the tomb spell failed to hold and the tomb vampires were freed. All because Damon wanted Elizabeth back, who wasn't even down in the tomb in the first place.

"I'm sorry, Bonnie," I whispered to her. "I…"

I didn't get a chance to finish before Caroline and Olivia rushed up and hugged Bonnie tightly.

"Thank God you're home!" Caroline exclaimed. "I know we talked every day, but I missed you!"

I blinked in surprise and noticed how Elena did the same, looking between Caroline and Bonnie oddly. Caroline and Bonnie talked every day? But Bonnie never answered when Elena or I called…

I looked over at Chastity, who mouthed that she would explain later.

"You too, Sam!"

I looked at Caroline.

"Me too, what?"

"You need to help me pick the perfect dress for the Founder's Court," she explained.

"The Founder's Court?" I repeated. "Did…I miss something?"

I glanced at Elena, who looked just as lost as I was.

"The Founder's Court," Olivia said obviously. "You know, Miss Mystic Falls."

"They announced it today," Caroline took over. "And, um, Elena and I are both on it."

"Oh my god, we signed up for that so long ago. I completely forgot," Elena said.

"So…are you dropping out, then?" Caroline asked hopefully.

Bonnie gave Elena a sympathetic look and I put a hand on her shoulder.

"I can't," Elena replied.

"No?" Caroline said, clearly disappointed.

"Their mom is the one who wanted Elena to enter," Bonnie explained.

"She wanted Sam to enter too, but she was too young," Chastity added. "She said as soon as she was old enough, though. She'd steal the show."

I remembered all the times when Elena and I were little. Mom used to let us dress up in her court dresses and pretend like we were in the pageant. She had us practice victory speeches and work on our graceful lady waves- as she called them. We loved it because it made us feel just like her.

There was no way Elena was going to drop out. She was going to do it for Mom. I would next year.

* * *

I sat at Chastity's house, flipping my phone over in my hand while she balanced a very high stack of tea cups.

"These things are real China," she told me. "Incentive for me not to let them fall and break. Aunt Claire'll kick my ass if I do."

I stayed quiet.

"You know, I don't really think it's fair what Bonnie's doing. To be completely honest, I think she's being a little bit dramatic, but I understand where she's coming from."

I didn't reply, just continued flipping my phone.

"How much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood."

"What?"

"So you are listening."

I sighed and set my phone down on my side.

"Sorry," I said. "I'm just…"

"Not here," she deduced. "I noticed."

I sighed again and sank in my chair.

"So you never told me how telling Jeremy the truth went," she said. "Was he angry?"

"Very," I answered. "Rightfully so. He asked me not to say anything to Elena about him knowing because he wants to confront her on his own at his own time."

"Understandable," she nodded. "And…Bonnie?"

I gave her a look before numbly looking back to the floating cups.

"I figured," she sighed. "You know why, don't you?"

"I have an idea," I admitted. "She's barely looked at Stefan since she got back. She blames him and Damon, doesn't she?"

"Oh yeah," Chastity confirmed. "She blames them and she doesn't want to have anything to do with them. She also understands that Elena is in love with Stefan and she doesn't want to make her choose between the epic love or her best friend. She also doesn't want to make you choose between her and your best friends."

I straightened up.

"I wouldn't say Damon and I are best friends," I said weakly.

"What are you and Damon exactly?"

I gaped at the question. We were friends. Of course, we were friends. That was it.

"Just friends," I told her. "It gets annoying how impulsive he can be and how he kills people- namely family members- without a single thought. But, we're friends."

"Right, friends," she drawled unconvinced. "Anyway…"

"Hey," I spoke up. "How have things been going with trying to convince Olivia to practice?"

"Ugh," Chastity rolled her eyes. "She's being a brat. 'I don't want powers!' this, 'I'm not anybody's bodyguard' that."

"Bodyguard?"

The cups fell, but stopped before they hit the table. Chastity's eyes had widened and her hands reached out. She let out a sigh of relief when the cups went back as I stared at her in shock.

"Yeah," she said clearing her throat. "Uh…bodyguard…we're essentially bodyguards to the Bennetts."

"Oh," I replied.

I eyed her suspiciously. There was something she wasn't telling me. Something she's been keeping from me for a while. As much as I wanted to ask what, I knew she would tell me in her own time. I had no right to be demanding people to tell me their secrets. Not when I've kept so many of my own.

* * *

Elena and I walked down the stair case together, Elena carrying her black dress bag on her arm and with me carrying a small bag of makeup and hair supplies for her. She went to the door to answer the knock, swinging it open to reveal Alaric all dressed up. I sent him a smile.

"Hey," Elena greeted.

"You look great, Alaric," I complimented.

"Thanks. You clean up pretty well yourself," he returned. "Um…I'll take that for ya."

He took Elena's dress for her and entered the house, closing the door behind him.

"How uh- how is Stefan?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" Elena said confused.

"Is something wrong?" I asked feeling concerned.

"No, no…nothing's wrong. It's just, you know, he seems…on edge," he commented.

Elena nodded.

"Well he went through a lot," she replied. "He was in bad shape for a while, but he's bouncing back now."

I studied Alaric's face, noticing how he didn't seem all that convinced. He clearly believed otherwise. Before I could question it, Uncle John entered the room.

"Alaric," he said surprised. "Hey buddy, what are you doing here?"

Elena made herself scarce the moment Uncle John entered, leaving me alone in the tense atmosphere between Uncle John and Alaric. Alaric looked at me, almost like he was asking for help.

"He's driving us," I answered. Alaric nodded.

"Oh. I thought I was driving," John said.

"No need," Jenna said as she came down the stairs. "We're going with Rick."

"Ready?" Elena asked hastily, walking through the room to the door.

Jenna nodded and looked at John.

"Jeremy can ride with you," she told him. "Ready, Sam?"

"Yeah."

Though I felt bad about leaving John behind, I felt worse about leaving Jeremy with him…

* * *

Up in the makeup room, Jenna held the curler in Elena's hair while I wiped away smudges from her eyeliner.

"Thanks for helping me, you two," she said then.

"Don't thank me until you're sure your hair isn't going to burn off!" Jenna joked.

"I thought I saw smoke," I teased.

She grinned at me and Elena chuckled before looking down sadly.

"You know…I remember when Mom and I first applied for this," she began. "She was so excited."

"You were too," I reminded her. "She made it sound like…so much fun. I was jealous I couldn't enter with you."

Elena smiled and held my hand.

"I remember that," she said. "Then Jeremy told you that you couldn't enter until you grew past five foot three."

"You're still too short, sweetie," Jenna teased.

I rolled my eyes playfully.

"Lots changed since then, though," Elena went on.

"Well, I hate to break it to you, but it's a little late for cold feet," Jenna told her.

"I don't have cold feet. I just…I think I'd be enjoying a lot more if…"

She trailed off and I tilted my head sympathetically.

"If she were here," I finished for her.

She nodded sadly.

"Well I'll tell you one thing," Jenna said after a moment of silence. "Your hair would have a better chance if she was. Sam's lucky I didn't curl hers."

I actually curled my own hair since I didn't want to bother Jenna while she was doing her own. After curling it, I pinned it all to the left and let the curls cascade down front.

Elena and I both giggled at Jenna before Elena raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, I think I really did see smoke."

* * *

"Ugh, I hope there's a room open so I can change," Elena said after noticing that most of the girls were gone.

"I'll go save one for you," I volunteered.

"Okay. Thanks."

I patted her arm before rising up and heading down the hall toward the dressing rooms. I hoped that the girls would have left the one with my sister's dress in it open.

When I arrived in said room, I found Amber pacing around and looking like a nervous wreck.

"Hey Amber," I greeted her. "Are you alright?"

"I hate being the center of attention," she nervously laughed. "I get panic attacks."

"Is there anything I can do for you at all? Do you need privacy to change?"

"Actually I'm just gonna go get some air," she responded.

She practically bolted from the room before I could say anything else. Poor girl, she really did hate being the center of attention. I hoped she would be alright.

Sighing, I turned back to the mirror where Elena's dress was hanging only to gasp and whirl around again when I saw Damon's reflection looking at me through the mirror.

"You scared me," I breathed out.

"Sorry," he muttered distractedly as he stared at me.

It was only then that I realized that the chiffon material of my dress was the same icy blue as his eyes. I hadn't even noticed when I put the dress on…

I found myself feeling more self conscious the longer he stared at me. The neckline of my dress was lower than I usually wore and made of creamy lace. The thin straps led in to a low v-back, intersecting before separating once more and ending at mid-back.

"You look beautiful," he eventually murmured sincerely.

"Thank you," I smiled sheepishly. I felt more like a little school girl than ever. "Um…what are you doing back here?"

He shook his head, resembling someone pulling themselves out of a daze.

"We need to talk," he said suddenly getting serious. "Where's Elena?"

"She's still getting her hair done," I replied. "Why? What's going on?"

He sighed and stepped closer to me, glancing out the window.

"Normally I would have a _completely _different outlook on what I'm about to tell you, but since it could inconvenience me, I'll…squeal," he began.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, fearing the worst.

"Stefan's still drinking human blood."

"What?"

We both looked to the door where Elena was standing in shock, her hand still on the knob.

"Yeah," Damon nodded, pulling her in the room all the way to close the door. "A month ago, I would have rejoiced. But with the council back on the alert, it is not a good time for Stefan to fly off the handle."

"I know he's been a bit edgy, but he said that was normal," Elena said, still shocked from the news.

I, on the other hand, pulled it together for her sake.

"He has _fridge_ full of stolen blood bank contraband in the house," Damon told Elena.

I blinked in surprise at that. He's been stealing blood? That wasn't normal Stefan behavior. Or maybe it was…maybe the Stefan I knew, the Stefan Elena knew…wasn't normal Stefan. Maybe it was like Damon said and there was a whole other part of Stefan that he's been shutting out for too long.

Elena went to the sofa to sit down.

"Oh my god," she breathed.

"He has no idea what normal is," Damon continued. "His entire existence isn't normal."

"Because he hasn't been drinking human blood," I deduced quietly. "Because…he's been fighting that craving and now…"

"Now he's like an alcoholic off the wagon on a bender. It's controlling him," Damon said oh-so-delicately.

"I can't believe this. I mean, this is Stefan we're talking about here," Elena denied.

"Stefan on human blood. He'll do anything, he'll say anything because he's not gonna wanna stop."

"I want to help him. What can we do?" I asked desperately. "How can we help him?"

"For you, in particular, to help, wouldn't be a very good idea on account of your-"

"Smell. Right," I nodded, feeling frustrated.

"Since he sucks with controlling his lust for blood, if he gets agitated enough…he could attack you and the idea doesn't sit well with me," Damon continued.

"This is all my fault," Elena said suddenly bolting up. She began pacing the room like a mad woman, shaking her head in guilt. "I'm the one who fed him blood in the first place."

The door opened then and Stefan entered. Call it hindsight, but now I noticed everything. How he seemed a bit darker than before, how there weren't as many lines on his forehead anymore- as if he had no cares in the world.

"What's going on in here?" he asked curiously stepping casually in to the room with his hands in his pockets.

"Just filling Elena and Sam in on your extracurricular activities," Damon answered just as casual as Stefan as acting.

Stefan's face morphed from nervous to confused and he frowned.

"What are you talking about?" he asked innocently with a scoff.

"I know about the blood, Stefan," Elena said accusingly.

I winced at her tone, even though her words hadn't been meant for me.

"You know what, why don't we go downstairs?" I said to Damon. "We'll…give these two some privacy."

"You're right. I'm sure they have a lot to talk about," Damon agreed, taking my hand and leading me to the door.

As I walked past Stefan, I watched from the corner of my eye as he tensed the slightest bit the closer I got to him. I wondered if it was the smell of my blood making him react that way, but decided it wasn't the time to ask. Actually, I don't even know if I wanted to ask.

* * *

**Third POV**

After leaving Elena in the changing room, Stefan immediately burst in to one of the many bathrooms of the house and locked the door behind him. He gripped the sink tightly, hearing the ceramic start to crack under the pressure, before he pulled back a fist and struck the mirror so hard that his fist went through the wall behind it.

Glass shattered down in to the sink. He paid no mind the blood that remained on his knuckle after his wound healed. It hadn't even hurt. He felt too much to feel pain at the moment.

Anger. He was angry at Damon for betraying him by going behind his back to tell Sam and Elena about the blood. Damon was the one who had been pushing him from the start to drink human blood again, now he was panicking because Stefan was doing just that.

He also felt regret. Regret that Elena and Sam had to find out from Damon of all people about the blood, but at the same time he was frustrated that Elena reacted the way he did. He was frustrated that she didn't have faith that he had it under control.

He was frustrated that he really didn't have it under control.

When she- Sam- walked past him…he wanted her to say something. To tell him it was alright, that she still saw him the same way she always did. That she still thought of him as the guy she played pool with on his birthday and danced with at the decades dance. The same one who protected her- or tried to protect her up until the other vampires showed up to dispatch her attackers.

Because if she had said that, if she had said anything, it would have distracted him from her smell. It would have not made him focus on how much he wanted her blood.

The poor girl who just came in to the bathroom would have to do.

* * *

**Sam's POV**

Damon and I stood together at the bottom of the elaborate staircase, waiting for Elena to make her grand entrance. I looked all around the crowd, searching for a face that wasn't here.

"Where is Stefan?" I whispered to Damon, clapping after Tina Fell was announced.

Damon looked around before whispering back, "I have no idea."

"Miss Caroline Forbes, and her escort Jeffrey Lockwood-Hamilton."

I looked in time to see Caroline walk elegantly down the stairs, a beautiful happy smile on her face. I smiled and clapped for her before realizing that Elena was next.

"Damon, Elena is next and Stefan is nowhere to be seen," I whispered.

"Already on it," he murmured to me.

He walked over to a guy standing a couple feet away.

"What's your name?" Damon asked. Or compelled, I should say.

"Jace Logan," he answered robotically.

"Gross," Damon commented.

He pushed the guy to foot of the stairs beside Mayor Lockwood.

"Your name is Henry Logan-Campbell," Damon compelled. He then told the announcer to say the same name.

"Miss Elena Gilbert, escorted by Henry Logan-Campbell."

Elena descended down the stairs and I smiled softly, but also sympathetically at her when she tried to smile even though Stefan wasn't here. After she was down and had taken her escort's arm, Damon walked quickly back to me and pulled me away from the crowd.

"You and I are going on a Stefan hunt," he declared.

* * *

Damon and I barely returned in time to see Caroline get crowned as Miss Mystic Falls after failing to find Stefan. We had searched every inch of the house, looked all around the front, and even went to the backyard during the dance but we couldn't find him anywhere.

Damon wanted to look through the woods, but we only managed to get so far before we decided it would be better to get back before Elena started to worry more.

It was a good thing too since one of the cops working security had come up to Damon shortly after the crowning and told him he was needed upstairs. While he went, I went to search for my sister and when I found her, I led her in to one of the empty rooms.

"Did you find him?" she asked worriedly.

"No," I replied regretfully. "But I'm sure we will and I'm sure he's alright. We just…need to keep looking."

"Amber never came back," she said. "You don't think-"

"No," I tried to say firmly, though we both know it was too much of a coincidence.

We were joined by Damon then, who said it was Uncle John and Sheriff Forbes who called him up.

"What was it?" Elena asked.

"There were signs of struggle in the upstairs bathroom," he informed us. "There was blood and that Amber girl is missing too."

"Oh my god," Elena whimpered.

"He wouldn't hurt her. He won't," I denied.

"Let's just find him," Damon said calmly. "Okay? Get your coats."

We didn't need to be told twice.

With our coats on, we ran outside to search for Stefan. We started toward one direction, but stopped when Damon held out an arm in front of us.

"What is it?" I asked him.

"Blood."

He led us in the direction the blood was coming from and a scream pierced through the air as we ran in on…

"Stefan!" Elena screamed.

Stefan immediately released his hold on Amber, his bloodied face turning at the sound of Elena's voice. I gasped as Amber fell to the side, immediately lurching forward to go to her, but Damon kept me back.

"Stefan, come on, get control of it," Damon encouraged cautiously.

He gently pushed me to Elena as he slowly approached his brother. I stared in shock at him, but felt no fear. Just…sympathy.

Stefan must have been so scared. This drive, this craving for blood was controlling him and I could see now that he was desperate to stop it, but didn't know how. He needed help, but I didn't know how to help him.

"Come on, Stefan. Breathe through it, man," Damon continued, getting closer to Stefan.

Suddenly, Stefan grabbed Damon and threw him toward the trees.

"Stefan, stop it!" Elena cried with tears streaming down her face.

"Stefan!" I called.

The way he approached his own brother…in such a menacing way. It was predatory, carnal. Angry.

Before Stefan could get closer to Damon, he clutched at his head as if in pain and let out a cry. Elena and I both looked behind us to see Bonnie with Chastity right behind her. Both of them were watching Stefan, but Bonnie's gaze was more concentrated. The concentrated look of working magic. She was casting a spell.

When she stopped, Stefan calmed down and now looked horrified. He looked from Elena, to me, to Damon. Damon walked toward him cautiously once more.

"It's okay," he assured him.

Stefan didn't look convinced.

"Stefan," I breathed.

He snapped his head to me before disappearing. My heart sank. He wasn't going to handle this well.

* * *

When the police and ambulance arrived, Bonnie, Elena, Damon, Chastity, and I stood to the side and watched as the EMTs tended to Amber. Other than the large bite on her neck, she was alright.

We watched as Sheriff Forbes patted her shoulders comfortingly before approaching us.

"She doesn't remember what happened," she informed us.

_Because of Damon's compulsion_, I thought.

"It's a good thing the girls got here when they did," Damon said relieved. "She lost a lot of blood."

Sheriff Forbes looked from him to us again.

"You didn't see anything?" she checked.

I could tell she was really digging to see if we saw _what_ attacked her. I'm not sure what repercussions our knowledge of vampires would have, but Elena didn't want us to find out.

Elena glanced back at Bonnie, who shook her head, while I answered.

"No," I said. "We found her out here and I called Damon."

"Is she gonna be okay?" Bonnie asked almost stoically then.

"Looks like it, yeah," Sheriff Forbes nodded.

I closed my eyes in relief. I had been so worried that Amber had lost too much blood.

"Why don't you girls get back to the party? Damon and I can take it from here," Sheriff Forbes encouraged.

"Okay," I agreed, wanting to get Elena and Bonnie out of here since they both were clearly traumatized. I wasn't all too thrilled about having Chastity here either.

I took Elena's arm and led her away from the scene, following behind Bonnie and Chastity.

"Bonnie, can we talk about this?" Elena begged the practically running Bonnie.

"There's nothing to talk about," Bonnie told her.

"Bonnie, please," I sighed feeling exasperated.

"Look, I told Elena I wasn't going to make her choose and the same goes for you," Bonnie said frustrated. "But I need to make the choice for myself."

"So you're just never going to speak to either of us again?" I questioned.

Bonnie sighed and opened her mouth, but closed it immediately and continued walking to her car. She climbed in and started it up. Chastity shrugged.

"I'll talk to her," she promised before climbing in.

Elena and I watched as Bonnie drove the car away from us, feeling more dejected than before.

* * *

**Third POV**

Later, at the boarding house, Stefan paced upstairs like an animal in a cage before he was joined by Elena, totally unaware that she, Sam, and Damon had made a plan.

"You shouldn't be here," he said after seeing her in the mirror.

"I know," she replied strongly, though she looked cautious.

He turned.

"Now you know."

"That wasn't you," Elena denied.

"Oh, it was absolutely me," he scoffed. "A monster, a predator, that's who I _am_, Elena."

"That's what the blood makes you," Elena argued.

"The blood brings out what's inside of me, and if you think any differently than you're an idiot," he countered impatiently.

Slightly hurt by his retort, Elena continued.

"I know this isn't you, Stefan," she insisted.

He whirled toward her, willing her to understand.

"I wanted to drain every ounce of blood from that girl's body," he said clearly. "And Sam…"

"What about Sam?" Elena demanded immediately.

"If Damon hadn't stopped her…if she had gotten any closer to me…she would have been next."

That scared Elena. The fact that her sister had been so close to Stefan when he had such a strong urge to drink her blood. Would he have killed her? Would he have done the same to her as he did to Amber?

Did he still want to?

She didn't know. And that scared her.

* * *

**Sam's POV**

Damon stiffened beside me suddenly and I looked at him questioningly.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing," he clearly lied.

I eyed him suspiciously. He looked disturbed and I wondered what he could have heard or even thought of that caused his change of state.

When I heard crashing in Stefan's room, I nearly ran in to check on him and Elena, but forced myself to stay back. Stefan would never hurt Elena.

Damon moved closer to me, so close that his arm was brushing up against mine, almost protectively.

"Seriously, what's-"

"She did it."

With that, we made our way to Stefan's room where Elena was standing over Stefan with red eyes.

"You sure you wanna do this?" Damon asked her.

"I'm sure," she nodded.

Damon picked Stefan up and brought him down to the basement where he locked him inside the cell. He closed the door and locked it, turning to Elena and me.

"There's no guarantee this is gonna work," he warned us.

"We have to at least try," I said looking at Stefan through the bars. "I said I wanted to help him. I meant that. If there's a chance this will work…then we have to try."

Damon nodded and moved to go upstairs, Elena following him before stopping at the bottom step. I had only moved back toward the wall across from the door and sank down to the ground.

"You're not coming?" Damon asked.

"I'm gonna stay here," I told him.

"So am I," Elena whispered before moving next to me and sinking down to my left.

Damon lingered for a few moments before he sighed and sank against the opposite wall beside me. I reached out and took his hand comfortingly.

Stefan was his brother. No matter how much Damon claimed to hate Stefan, no matter how badly they got along- they were brothers at the end of the day and I knew that Damon cared about Stefan a lot more than he let on. I couldn't even begin to imagine how hard this must have been on him.

Damon smiled weakly and squeezed my hand in his.

Stefan didn't want to be this way. He didn't want to be like Damon, but something told me that Damon didn't want to be like that anymore either. Hopefully, I would be able to help them both.

Hopefully.


	20. Blood Brothers

**Fave Song- Marchin' On by OneRepublic**

* * *

**Third POV**

Stefan Salvatore lay on a cot on his back, his arm hanging over the edge and his face turned to the side. Though he was in a cell in the basement of the Salvatore boarding house in 2010, flashes of the year 1864 played through his head.

He remembered the final night Elizabeth drank from him. He hadn't known his father laced his tea with vervain, so his blood poisoned Elizabeth and she was outed as a vampire as well as Katherine. They both had been muzzled, tied, and carried away along with the rest of the vampires and loaded in to the back of a carriage normally used for prisoners.

He and Damon- though angry at Stefan- had followed the carriage out in to the woods. While they watched Jonathan Gilbert lead the mob of hunters, the brothers plotted to free Elizabeth.

Stefan served as a distraction, claiming to have found another vampire deeper in to the woods, and led the mob away from the carriage while Damon punched out the single guard and stole his keys. Stefan returned in time for Damon to unlock and open the back. The two then quickly lifted Elizabeth and pulled her out.

"What about Katherine?" Stefan asked, feeling guilty for leaving one Pierce sister.

"There's no time. You, yourself, said we had to hurry," Damon rushed to remove the muzzle from Elizabeth.

Stefan sighed, but immediately panicked when he heard the sounds of the mob getting closer. He urged Damon to hurry, making his brother move faster to undo the rope around Elizabeth's wrists.

Suddenly a shot rang out and Damon fell back. Stefan jumped up.

"No!" he cried, rushing to Damon's side.

He pressed his hands to the wound and Damon grunted, his face scrunching in pain. He exhaled once before Stefan saw the lights fade from his eyes.

"Damon," Stefan whispered sadly, holding his brother's face.

Damon Salvatore was dead.

The mob arrived back shortly after and Stefan felt nothing but anger flowing through him. His brother was dead. Because of a mob of paranoid killers.

"I think we got one!" one of them shouted, seeing Stefan by the carriage.

Stefan rose to his feet and snatched up the rifle off the guard Damon had knocked out. He pointed it toward the incoming mob, but before he could aim at any of them, another shot rang through the air and pierced through his skin.

He fell back, like Damon had, and wheezed, feeling his blood drain out faster than it ever had when Elizabeth drank from him.

Said woman lay across from him, gasping when he was shot. Her eyes filled with an emotion he couldn't decipher as she watched him die.

"Stefan," she whispered.

* * *

"Stefan," Sam whispered from beside him in the present.

* * *

"I'm sorry," Elizabeth said.

* * *

"You'll be okay," Sam assured him.

* * *

Stefan watched as the men reloaded Elizabeth back in to the carriage and drove away. Elizabeth looked back at him from the barred opening of the back door before disappearing within the darkness of the carriage.

It was the last thing Stefan Salvatore saw before he died.

* * *

**Sam's POV**

Elena and I watched from the cell door as Stefan drifted in and out of consciousness. He was rolled on to his side, back facing us, but I knew he was suffering and I hated it.

"It's so hard to see him locked up like this," Elena shook her head sadly.

"You're the one who locked him up," Damon reminded her.

I shot him a look and he shrugged.

"You helped," Elena retorted.

"We all did this," I cut in before a fight had the chance to start. "We thought it'd be the best for him. That doesn't make it easier to watch him go through it."

"Well, it is for the greater good," Damon assured me. "We can't exactly have him running around chewing on people while the town's looking for vampires, now, can we?"

I looked at him, unconvinced.

"It had nothing to do with you actually caring about him?" Elena asked.

He scoffed and Elena rolled her eyes in disgust before marching to the stairs, muttering something about grabbing water and getting air.

"You didn't have to lie to her," I told him after she was gone. "You don't have to deny it. You care about Stefan."

"Your thing, not mine," he replied, pushing himself off the wall he was leaning against.

"You can't just stop caring," I argued, putting a hand on his arm to stop him from leaving. "Especially about your brother."

"You really think I care?" he challenged with one eyebrow raised.

I didn't move or break eye contact when he stepped closer to me.

"Yes," I answered earnestly. "I do."

"What makes you think I do?" he asked as our fronts brushed against each other.

"You could have left town and let the council find out about Stefan. Instead, you chose to stay and help him."

"Oh," he smiled and nodded. "And…what makes you think any of this is for _him_?"

I furrowed my eyebrows, feeling truly confused as he toyed with the end of a lock of my hair.

"Who else would it be for?"

He didn't answer, just continued staring down at me. His eyes seemed to search my face for…I don't know, actually. I didn't know what he was looking for. What he was waiting for. An answer maybe?

There was something in his gaze while he stared at me. Something I never saw, even in Adam's eyes when I was dating him. It was the way someone would look at the person or thing that was their entire world. Like the universe rotated around that person, like the whole point of living was for that person.

Suddenly there was nothing else and no one else- just me and him.

"Am I interrupting something?"

I jerked back away from Damon at the sound of Elena's voice. She stood at the bottom of the stairs, water bottle in hand, and a suspicious look on her face.

"No," Damon answered her shortly.

He walked past her without a glance back at her or even me. Elena turned to me then.

"What's going on with you two?" she asked.

I didn't even know.

* * *

Elena and I walked back up to the living room after the awkward air between her and I had diffused. She was convinced something was going on between Damon and I, but I reminded her that he still wanted to find Elizabeth. As…amazing as he could make me feel, I didn't want to be a fill-in for Elizabeth until he got her back.

Damon stood by a table topped with an assortment of drinks. He fiddled with the circular device resemblant to a pocket watch that Pearl had given him as an apology gift for the vampires under her charge kidnapping and torturing Stefan.

"Did you ever find out what that was?" Elena asked while she and I gathered our things from our stay.

After we locked Stefan up, Damon offered to let us just stay here since it would be easier for us to keep tabs on Stefan. We didn't even hesitate to accept.

"Nope," Damon said. "Whatever it is, it doesn't work."

"Pearl didn't say anything else about it?" I asked. "Just that she thought it was his vampire compass?"

"Yep," he answered. "That Jonathan Gilbert was a crazy scientist." He paused before looking back at me. "Have you spoken to your uncle lately?"

"Not me," I shook my head. I looked to Elena. "What about you?"

"I've been avoiding him, actually," she admitted. "That, and I've been here most nights."

"So you'll be here again tonight?" he questioned.

"Yes. Have a problem with that?" she asked, daring him to say something.

"Yes," he replied. "You are a complete nuisance. Especially you, cute stuff."

I rolled my eyes at his tease.

"Have I ever told you what a joy you are?" I asked with a smile.

"Oooh," he hissed with a smirk. "I don't think so. Flatter me, though. I won't stop you."

I rolled my eyes again.

"See ya later," I said, following Elena out.

We headed out the front, walking to her car to go back to the house to pick up fresh clothes.

"Nothing's going on huh?" she asked as soon as we were outside.

"Nothing."

I think.

* * *

Later, I sat on the sofa playing Pac-Man on my phone while I waited for Elena to come back downstairs. I had already grabbed everything that I needed and had called Damon like Elena asked me to check in on Stefan. He was being broody, according to Damon, and wasn't eating anything.

I offered to bring blood- his favorite- but immediately regretted asking Damon what kind his favorite was when he answered golden retriever puppy. I knew he was teasing, but still. Never know…

The sound of thundering footsteps coming down the stairs made me look up.

"Let's go," Elena said urgently, making a beeline to the door.

"Uh…"

"Samantha."

Uncle John came down the stair soon after Elena and gave a fake smile to Elena before walking over to me.

"Hey…Uncle John," I greeted. "I didn't even know you were here."

"Well how could you when you've been gone so many nights?" he chuckled.

I glanced over at Elena, who was glaring at our uncle's back impatiently.

"Right, sorry about that," I apologized, not sure what else to say.

"Oh don't worry about it," he waved a hand dismissively. "I was just hoping to talk to you for a minute. I was just telling Elena that I haven't had the chance to catch up with you girls just yet."

"What did you want to talk about?" I asked in anticipation.

"Let's stop the games now, Sam," he said seriously. "Your sister is dating a vampire and you're getting awfully close to one."

That wasn't surprising in the least bit, although he did surprise me with how blunt he had been.

"Stefan is a good guy," I said. "And Damon is a good friend to me."

"A good guy who would drain you dry in a heartbeat and a good friend who can crush your skull without blinking," Uncle John retorted. "Do you have any idea how dangerous they are for you to be around? What kind of attention they could draw to you? What they could do to you? Your mother would never approve of either of them and I think you know that."

"Again, which mother?" Elena cut in, obviously angry about him bringing Mom in to this.

He sighed and glanced at her. He then cut his gaze back to me expectantly. Did he really want me to answer?

"Like Elena said," I replied as coldly as I could. "Which mother?"

"Sam-"

"I know I was adopted," I said. "Elena knows she was too. We also know…about her birth mother."

He appeared the slightest bit agitated at that piece of news, though he kept his look of superiority.

"You don't know Stefan or Damon," I went on. "Most of all, you don't know what Mom would say. I actually think she'd like them."

Once she got past Damon's ego, that is. Sheriff Forbes certainly seemed to like him well enough and she was one of Mom's best friends.

Not giving Uncle John a chance to reply, and not wanting to hear anything else he had to say, I brushed past him and exited with Elena.

* * *

Later that night, Elena and I sat together on one of the sofas in the boarding house while Damon stood behind the other. Elena had told us about what Stefan said to her earlier, about not wanting to survive. He didn't feel like he deserved to live after what he's done. He wanted it to be over.

"He's just being dramatic," Damon said. "He's not gonna starve himself."

"Why would he say that?" Elena asked, clearly troubled.

"He feels bad about hurting that girl," Damon explained. "It's very typical Stefan martyr stuff. It will pass."

"Will it?" Elena challenged. "Because he seemed to be in a lot of pain."

"That'll pass, too, once he eats."

I sat silently pondering over everything. Stefan's been alive for over a century. For his emotional turmoil to only be caused by his recent attack on Amber…it was unlikely. Unless…it was just one of many things he felt he needed to pay for.

"Are you two going to be alright if I have to step out?" Damon asked. "I have to go on an errand with the teacher."

"You mean Alaric?" I asked, looking over at him finally.

"That one," he confirmed.

"Are you friends now?" Elena asked almost amused.

"I don't have friends."

The statement stung me. So…he didn't consider me a friend? I sure as hell considered him one. I pulled myself together after seeing Elena look at me for a reaction. I didn't need her to know what he said bothered me. Not when she had Stefan to worry about.

"You know, you two should stay up here. You shouldn't be down there by yourselves, especially not you," Damon said, pointing to me after he pulled his jacket on.

"We'll be fine," Elena stated.

Damon paused.

"You know you both are very trusting of him, given the circumstances," he observed.

"Stefan would never hurt us," I replied confidently. "You're pretty trusting of him too. Otherwise you wouldn't be leaving."

He seemed a bit phased, but brushed it off.

"I won't be long," he promised.

I watched his back until he disappeared from the living room.

"What if he's right?" Elena questioned suddenly. "What if we shouldn't be trusting him?"

"We can," I assured her. "We can trust Stefan and we can trust Damon."

* * *

Alright, so I shouldn't be down here. Elena didn't want me downstairs without her. While she trusted Stefan, she didn't think it would hurt to be careful.

So I waited until she went up to have a bath before I snuck downstairs. I knew he knew I was there the instant I stepped in front of the door.

"You know Damon hasn't fed me vervain in a while," he said. "I could be at those bars in a flash, and you'd be dead."

"I didn't actually think you'd try to scare me," I said amazed. "Would you really do it?"

He didn't answer and held his head in his hands.

"Please go away," he groaned. "I don't want you here."

He was clearly lying, trying to push me away out of fear that he would hurt me or that I would convince him to stray away from dying. Maybe both. Normally, I would listen. Normally, I would follow his advice because he was Stefan and he was one of my best friends…but I couldn't this time.

I unlocked the door and entered the cell with him, much to his alarm.

"What are you doing?" he panicked. "Get out of here."

"No," I said firmly, closing the door behind me.

"You're taking a stupid risk coming in here smelling the way you do. I could hurt you."

"I trust that you won't," I insisted.

I picked up the water bottle full of blood up from the ground and held it out to him.

"You need to drink this, though," I told him.

"Sam, get out of here or you'll regret it."

"Drink this or you'll regret it," I countered. "Do you have any idea how worried we all are about you? You need to stop starving yourself and drink this."

In the blink of an eye, he was up in front of me. He slapped the blood out of my hand and glared down at me, his face fully vamped out.

"I said get out!" he hissed.

I didn't even flinch when he got in my face.

"And I said no," I reminded him. "Now put the fangs away."

His face morphed back to normal, but he was still tense as he backed away, clearly disappointed that I didn't leave.

"Please, Stefan," I whispered, watching him move to sit on the cot. "Talk to me."

* * *

"Elena told me…what you decided," I sighed after moving on to the cot beside him.

He hadn't bothered to stop me, seeing that he failed to scare me before.

"I was wondering…if you would be willing to tell me why you feel you want to die. Why you think you deserve to."

"It's just the decision I should have made years ago," he deadpanned.

I swallowed. I had a feeling I knew what decision he meant, but I asked anyway.

"What decision is that?"

He licked his lips and looked over at me seriously. "You have to feed in order to complete the transition…it was a choice I shouldn't have made."

I took a shaky breath. I had a feeling that's what he meant.

I listened quietly and attentively while he told the story of his transition. How he and Damon were shot trying to save Elizabeth and woke up hours after at a cottage Emily brought them to. She told Stefan that Elizabeth had been compelling Stefan to drink her blood while Damon drank from her willingly.

After deciding not to go through with the transition, Stefan had gone back to his family home to say goodbye to his father, only to find out that his father had been the one to kill his own sons out of shame of them for trying to help Elizabeth. Giuseppe, a man with an extreme disgust and hatred of vampires, was going to kill Stefan to make sure he stayed dead. Stefan defended himself on instinct, but accidentally impaled his father with the stake he was trying to use against Stefan.

In the end, the bloodlust overpowered Stefan and he ended up feeding on and killing his own father.

I suppose I should have been disgusted. I should have seen Stefan as a monster. Anyone else would have.

I wasn't anyone else, I guess.

I felt…sorrow. I couldn't believe that Stefan had to carry this guilt with him for over a century. He blamed himself for not being strong enough to overcome the bloodlust, but it wasn't his fault. He was new to it at the time. He couldn't possibly have known how strong it was and it wasn't like Elizabeth was giving him lessons on how to control it. She didn't even stick around after she escaped being imprisoned in the tomb.

"How can you even look at me right now?" Stefan asked me when he finished his story.

"Because you're still you," I replied. "You're still one of my best friends and you always will be, no matter what. This does not change how I see you because it wasn't your fault."

"I killed my own father."

"Because you didn't know what was happening to you," I reminded him. "You didn't know how strong that urge was and you didn't know how to fight it. It doesn't make you a monster. Not to me."

He smiled softly, but remained quiet.

"You have to talk about this stuff," I went on. "And I want you to be able to talk to me. I want you to be able to talk to Elena. So come upstairs and do that. Please."

"You're so sure I'm ready," he looked at me.

I nodded. "You are. I never lost faith in you, Stefan. I know you won't hurt anyone. Especially not us."

I stood up and pulled his daylight ring Damon had handed over to me out of my pocket. I set it down on the cot beside him.

"Elena and I will be upstairs. Come up when you're ready."

With that, I turned and headed to the door.

"Thank you, Sam," he said sincerely. "For…putting so much faith in me. For trying to see the good, not just in me, but in my brother too."

I looked back at him, feeling a knot start to form in my stomach. There was something behind his words…I just couldn't figure out what.

* * *

"You went down there by yourself?" Elena said exasperated. "I told you to wait."

"I needed to talk to him," I told her, propping my feet up on the sofa I was sitting on. "I needed to find out why he was punishing himself."

"Did he tell you?"

I sighed and told her the same story Stefan told me about his transition and his father.

She stared down at the ground, lowering herself in an armchair with tears welling in her eyes, after I was done.

"Oh my god," she whispered. "It's no wonder he…I can't believe he's been carrying that burden for so long. It's unimaginable. And to think all this time he hasn't had anyone to talk to about it."

"I told him to come up when he was ready," I said. "Hopefully that's soon."

Soon after, we heard footsteps entering the room. Instead of Stefan, like I was hoping, it was Damon. He fake groaned upon seeing us.

"Ugh, you're still here?" he quipped.

"Like we would actually leave," I replied.

He lifted my feet and sat down on the sofa with me, resting my legs down on top of his lap. He propped his arms up on top of my legs like an armrest.

"How'd you errand go?" I asked.

"Futile," he answered. "Although, I think I witnessed the teacher having an existential crisis."

"Is he okay? What happened?" I asked immediately, feeling concerned about Alaric now.

"Ah…nothing too important or traumatic," he waved. "Has Stefan eaten yet?"

"I thought you didn't care," Elena smirked.

"Morbid curiosity," he lied- very well, might I add.

"I think he's getting there, but there's a lot of things he has to make peace with. A lot of guilt over your dad, Elizabeth…and there's something about you too."

"Me?" Damon pointed to himself.

"Maybe because you spent the last 145 years punishing him for Elizabeth and Katherine getting caught," Elena jabbed.

"This is _my_ fault now?"

"No one said that," I interjected, stopping Elena before she could say anything else to push blame on Damon. "But I know there's more to what happened all those years ago and it has something to do with you. So what happened?"

"What makes you think it had anything to do with me?" he asked slowly.

"Maybe because for the last 145 years, you've had an overwhelming amount of anger- too much for it to be just about Elizabeth and Katherine. Whatever happened…he feels guilty and he's beating himself up about it now. So tell me. What happened?"

Damon took a deep breath.

* * *

Stefan forced Damon to turn. Damon didn't want to complete the transition because he thought Elizabeth was dead and he didn't want to live without her. But after Stefan returned to him after completing his own transition, he brought a compelled woman with him and bit in to her neck, forcing Damon to drink her blood and turn in to a vampire.

Damon drank while he told us the story, taking sips throughout as if to numb the memory.

"From the moment Stefan had his first taste of human blood, he was a different person," Damon told Elena and me. "I suppose I should thank him. It's been a hell of a ride. Heh."

Elena had an mixed expression of shock and disbelief, like she didn't know what to think or she couldn't believe that out of the two of them, Stefan had been the one to force Damon to turn.

I…saw the relationship between the two in a whole new light. The hatred, the resentment, the punishment…it was all because Stefan forced Damon to turn. Because Damon didn't want to live without Elizabeth, but Stefan forced him to live forever without her. Or maybe…maybe it could even have been because he was jealous Elizabeth turned Stefan too.

"He said he wanted to die. That's why he won't feed, now I understand why, but…" Elena trailed off.

"His choice," Damon finished for her, pouring himself another glass of bourbon. "If he's stupid enough to make it, so be it."

"Damon, don't pretend like you don't care," I said through narrowed eyes while Elena marched to the cellar.

"I'm not pretending," Damon insisted.

"Yes you are," I argued. "You're pretending not to care because you think it's easier that way. No one will expect anything of you if you're the bad guy, right?"

He stared at me for a long while, his glass in his hand and his eyes glossed over. He swallowed and set his glass back down.

Before he could say anything, Elena rushed back in with Stefan's daylight ring in hand.

"He's gone!"

* * *

Damon and I waited back at the boarding house while Elena went out to find Stefan. At this point, I thought that Elena had the best shot of getting through to him. He loved her more than anything else in the world and because Damon was deciding to play the I-don't-care game, she would do better with helping him see the good in himself.

"What makes you think I care?" Damon asked me out of the blue.

I looked away from the fireplace over my shoulder at him. He was standing by the table full of alcohol, staring at me intently as he waited for my answer.

"Haven't I answered that already?"

He hummed and took a drink from his glass.

"Your answer was about Stefan," he pointed out. "But you make it sound like you think I care in general."

"Do you?"

"Haven't _I_ answered _that_?"

I looked back to the fireplace and took a moment to think about my answer.

"It's the things you do," I finally answered, feeling him standing behind me now. "When you first got to town, you made it clear numerous times that if you wanted someone dead- namely Stefan, Elena, or even me- then they would be dead. You never killed us. You've never even hurt Elena or I physically. Never bit us or anything."

"I threatened your sister," he suddenly said. My head whipped toward him. "I threatened her when I found her and Stefan digging up my father's grave for the journal. I force fed her my blood and threatened to turn her in to a vampire in order to get the journal from Stefan."

"You also bit Caroline, turned Vicki in to a vampire, killed Lexi, and almost killed Bonnie," I reminded him. "You've done so many terrible things, but that doesn't mean there isn't any good in you."

"Why do you keep saying that?" he asked almost frustrated. "Why do you make it so hard?"

"What am I making hard?" I asked, rising to my feet. "Why do you keep trying to convince me to hate you?"

"Because it would be a hell of a lot easier if you did!"

I stared at him in shock.

"You want me to hate you because it would be easier," I repeated. "Just like it's easier for you to be the bad guy?"

"Yes."

I scoffed at him.

"Too bad."

He stared at me in astonishment, his shoulders slumping as though defeated.

"I'm not letting take the easier way out," I told him. "Not when I know that there is good in you. There is someone who cares beneath the mask and I'm not going to give up on you, so you may as well stop trying to talk me out of it."

Taking tentative steps toward him, I put one hand on his face.

"I care about you, Damon," I said earnestly. "So let me in."

Elena and Stefan returned at that moment, staring frozen between Damon and I. I stepped back and walked up to Stefan, throwing my arms around him tightly.

"Thank god," I sighed with relief. "I'm glad you're okay. You are okay, right?"

"Better than I was," Stefan answered, hugging me back, though I knew he was still looking at Damon over me. "Thank you, Sam. For not giving up on me."

"I'm not big on giving up on people," I said, directing my words to both him and Damon.

"I know," Stefan laughed. "I'm glad you're not."

Releasing him, I glanced back at Damon.

"Um, Elena and I should get upstairs," I said.

"You're right," she nodded. She kissed Stefan's cheek. "See you up there."

We said good night to the brothers before walking out of the room and going upstairs. It's been one hell of a day.


	21. Isobel

**Fave Song- Ain't No Rest For the Wicked by Cage the Elephant**

* * *

While helping Caroline and Bonnie- who was actively avoiding any sort of contact with me, still- plan out the Miss Mystic Falls float, my phone rang in my pocket. Sighing, I reached in to my pocket and dug out my phone, pressing answer before tucking it between my shoulder and ear.

"Not a good time," I told him. "I'm helping build the Miss Mystic Falls float."

"Will you tell your sister that I am not her boyfriend's babysitter?" Damon ignored what I said. "Her check-ins are getting a little too…mother controlling."

I rolled my eyes.

"She's just worried and I'm pretty sure she calls Stefan, not you," I defended her. "Besides, I call you all the time to check-in."

"You ask about me too, so it's a little less like you see me as a babysitter," he retorted. "I don't know how Stefan puts up with her."

"They're a match made in Heaven."

"Or Hell."

"You're funny."

"You're cute."

"And as cute as this conversation has been, I really do have to go, so…"

"Hang on," he said quickly. "I did want to ask you something else. Have you been avoiding your uncle too?"

"As much as I can," I admitted. "Why?"

"No reason. I just have a feeling he may be up to something…"

"And it would be oh so helpful if I could get in to that head of his and try to find out what?"

"Well if you insist on helping me, I won't stop you."

I smiled.

"I'll see what I can get out of him, but no promises. Uncle John can be…let's just say stubborn."

"Must run in the family."

"Goodbye Damon."

"Bye Sammy-kins."

I hung up my phone and slid it back in my pocket, not noticing Chastity and Caroline's eyes on me until I looked up.

"What?" I asked them.

"Nothing going on with you two, huh?" Chastity said.

I didn't reply and was afraid of the methods they would resort to in order to get an answer out of me, but Alaric saved me by swooping over to us.

"Sam, got a minute?"

"Does it have to be right now?" Caroline asked impatiently. "We sort of have to get working on this pronto if we want our float to be the best in the show."

"It won't take long," Alaric promised.

I looked at him, not liking the worried expression on his face.

"Okay," I said. I turned to the girls. "Be right back."

* * *

Alaric stood against his desk at the front of the classroom while Stefan stood off to the side by the windows. I sat in the desk up front next to Elena, who sat perfectly frozen while she stared forward in half-fear and half-anxiousness. I laid a hand on top of hers comfortingly, still trying to process the news myself.

Isobel, as in Alaric's wife and Elena's birth mother, was in town. She wanted to meet Elena and me, apparently, even though I wasn't even her daughter. Or at least I didn't think I was.

"Sorry I'm late," Damon said as he entered in the classroom swiftly. "Dog ate my…" He looked around the room, stopping on my face. "Uh…never mind. What's with all the furrowed brows?"

"I saw Isobel last night," Alaric answered grimly.

Damon snapped his attention to him.

"Isobel's _here_? In town?"

Alaric nodded in confirmation and Damon looked between me and Elena.

"Did you ask about Uncle John?" Damon asked Alaric then. "Are they working together?"

"No," Alaric grumbled.

"No, they're not?"

"No, I didn't ask."

"What about the invention?"

"Didn't ask."

"Does she know about the tomb of vampires?"

"I don't know."

"Did words completely escape you?" Damon asked, now annoyed.

"I think the shock of seeing his vampire wife may have played a role," I spoke up for Alaric, who sent me a grateful look before looking back to Damon.

Damon ran a hand through his hair and groaned.

"What did she want then?" he asked.

"She wants to see us," Elena answered. "Sam and I both."

Damon's jaw clenched and he looked over at me, a protective glimmer in his eyes.

"Alaric is supposed to arrange a meeting," Stefan said then. "We don't know why or what she wants."

"Well then Elena can go. Sam doesn't have to. She's not her daughter." Damon looked at me. "You don't have to see her if you don't want to."

"I don't really have a choice," I sighed. "She wants us both there."

"She's threatened to go on a killing spree," Alaric explained softly.

Damon looked up in realization. "Oh! I take it that's…_not_ okay with you guys."

"I want to do it," Elena spoke up. "I want to meet her. If I don't, I know I'll regret it."

"I'm a little curious to see what she wants from me," I agreed. "So I'm going too. Besides, I don't want Elena to do this alone if she doesn't have to."

Elena smiled softly at me, squeezing my hand in hers. I knew she was nervous about meeting Isobel and the thankful look in her eyes told me she was glad she didn't have to do it alone. I was happy she didn't have to be too.

* * *

Since Isobel wanted us to be alone, Alaric and Damon were forced to wait outside of the Grill. Stefan stood by the pool table near where Elena and I were sitting tensely.

While we waited for Isobel, questions popped in my head one after another. What would she be like? Why did she want to meet Elena after telling her to stay away? What did she want from her? What did she want from me? Why did she want to meet me? Did she know about Katherine? Did she know about Elizabeth? Was she working with Uncle John after all?

A shadow loomed over us and I looked up from the table to see a beautiful pale woman with blue eyes about a shade lighter than Damon's and brown hair so dark it was closer to black. She didn't exactly look like someone who could be Elena's mother. In fact, she reminded me more of Snow White.

But there was something about the way she looked. Something cold and…emotionless. It was like there was nothing at all within her, no soul or humanity. Nothing. It was unnerving.

This was Isobel. This was Elena's birth mother and Alaric's wife.

She took her jacket off and sat down across from us, setting her hands delicately on her lap as she exhaled and smiled.

"Hello Elena," she said, looking at Elena first. She turned her attention to me. "And Samantha. It's a pleasure to meet you both."

I didn't know what to say. By the way she tensed up, neither did Elena.

"You look so much like them," Isobel said staring us down. "It's eerie."

"You've met Katherine and Elizabeth?" I asked, surprised.

That's two of my questions answered.

"Elizabeth tracked me down after I was turned. Genetic curiosity, I suppose. Katherine I just met recently," Isobel answered. "They would be fascinated by you."

Elena eyed the blue stone around Isobel's neck.

"Is that how you can walk in the day?" she asked.

"Elizabeth helped me obtain it," Isobel confirmed as she played with it a bit.

"Who's my father?" Elena demanded.

"Not important. He was a teenage waste of space," Isobel responded coldly.

"A name would be nice."

"It would, wouldn't it? You ask a lot of questions," Isobel stated.

"Why did you compel that man to kill himself right after he told me to stop looking for you?" Elena asked another question.

"Dramatic impact. Wish it would have been more effective."

"You really didn't want her to find you that badly?" I asked now. "Does human life mean that little to you?"

"It means nothing to me," she replied shaking her head. "It's just part of being what I am."

"That's just an excuse," I called out. "We know other vampires and they're good."

"Elena's boyfriend over there by the pool table?" she knowingly said. "Stefan Salvatore. I just have to ask, Elena, why Stefan? Why didn't you go for Damon?"

She looked over at me.

"Seems your sister has better taste in men," she smirked. "Unless you enjoy them both. Like Katherine and Elizabeth did."

I was shocked by what she said. Did she just accuse us of being like Katherine and Elizabeth? We were nothing like them. We weren't them and we never would be. I shook my head at her and decided to direct the topic elsewhere, seeing Stefan shift uncomfortably by the pool table. He clearly heard what she said.

"Why did you want to meet us?"

"Can't be to just catch up," Elena added.

"Because I'm curious about you," Isobel answered. "Both of you. But the real reason is because I want what your uncle wants: Jonathan Gilbert's invention."

"How do you know our uncle?" Elena asked.

"I used to spend a lot of time here when I was younger," Isobel began. "John had a crush on me for years. He was the first one that told me about vampires."

"You dated him," I figured, remember what Alaric and Damon had told me after their confrontation with John. "He gave you his ring and you gave it to Alaric."

"Smart girl," she congratulated. "Very nicely deduced."

"So what made you want to be a vampire?" Elena asked her while I sat silently.

If John and Isobel dated when Isobel hung around here and Isobel went to Dad when she was giving birth…

"It's a very long list of reasons, Elena," Isobel deadpanned. "All of which I'm sure you've thought about- I'm sure both of you have thought about."

While Elena shook her head instantly, I blinked slowly.

"That was your first lie," Isobel called out. "It's inevitable. You're gonna get old, Stefan won't. Forever doesn't last very long when you're human."

"I'm sorry, but I don't have what you're looking for," Elena said coldly as she rose up, trembling, from the table.

I stood up to follow and comfort her, but Isobel snatched my wrist before I could leave. Elena, who hadn't noticed Isobel had caught me, marched over to Stefan.

"Sit down," Isobel instructed me. "And tell your friend to walk away. He can keep Elena."

Looking over to Stefan and a now horrified Elena, who noticed that I wasn't behind her and was making her way back with Stefan, I nodded to assure them I would be okay and followed Isobel's order. I sat slowly in the seat Elena abandoned directly across from her and looked at Isobel strongly while Stefan and Elena retreated back to the pool tables.

"I want the invention," she repeated.

"I don't have it," I told her. "Elena already told you that."

"I know that, but Damon does. The reason I wanted you here is because I want you to get it for me."

"Damon isn't going to give it to me," I told her obviously.

"Then the blood will be on your hands," she warned ominously. "And I don't think that sweet little conscious of yours will be able to handle that."

Without giving me a chance to recover from the threat, she stood up and snatched her coat, breezing behind me on her way to the exit.

"It was nice meeting you both, Sam," she called over her shoulder to me.

Elena and Stefan didn't waste a moment before they were at the table. I immediately stood and pulled my sister in to a comforting hug, feeling her shake in my arms.

"I'm sorry, Elena," I whispered to her. "I'm sorry."

* * *

**Third POV**

Damon Salvatore played strip poker with Isobel's female blood bag while music played loudly. She was in nothing but lingerie while Damon had lost nothing but his shirt so far.

"Uh-oh, Cherie," Damon playfully said after Cherie slapped down her winning cards. "You won again. Hope I'm wearing my good underwear."

Isobel entered the room, slamming the door behind her to earn Damon's attention. He paused in the middle of unzipping his jeans while she walked further in.

"It's just one blast from the past after another," she said with a fake smile. She pointed to his jeans. "No, no, no."

Damon hummed and zipped his jeans once more and buckling his belt. Isobel shooed Cherie from the room in French while Damon picked his shirt back up, admiring the back of Cherie's half-naked form as she walked out of the room.

"It's good to see you, Isobel," he said while he pulled his shirt back on. "I was just having fun with your naughty little minion."

"Mmm," Isobel smiled. "How'd you find me?"

Damon sped up to her until their faces were just inches away from each other and slapped a hand against the wall behind her. She didn't even blink.

"Searched all the neighborhood bank-owned foreclosures and found the most expensive one," he replied quickly.

"Oh I should have known," she smirked up at him. "You were the one who taught me that."

"Mm-hmm," Damon agreed.

"What are you really doing here?" she asked curiously.

"Well, you caused quite a stir when you blew into town," Damon began. "Saw everyone except for the man who made you, I'm a little hurt."

He pouted and leaned in closer to her.

"I'm so sorry," Isobel cooed, clearly not sorry. Grabbing Damon's hair, she yanked his head down, turning his face to the side. "Did you bring the device?"

Damon chuckled and rolled out of her hold, putting a hand up to his head.

"Ow," he breathed heavily as she walked away. "What are you doing with John Gilbert?"

"We dated a few times when we were young," she replied. "He was a little bit in love with me."

"I'm sure one of the many," Damon hummed.

There was something about hers and Elena's bloodline, stemming all the way back to Katherine that drew men in. As strong as their siren call was, the draw to Elizabeth and Sam had always been stronger. He knew Elizabeth had men dropping to their knees and obeying her every command, fulfilling every whim. It had been one of the many reasons why Katherine had always been so jealous of her.

"You know, this little invention, what do you want with it?" Damon asked then.

"Oh, me personally?" Isobel said. "I don't want anything with it. I'm just doing what I'm told. You know, Damon, we're on the same side."

Damon had gotten closer to her, lifting her chin up with his fingers. Inside, he was cringing at his own actions, but he needed Isobel to give him answers.

"Oh yeah?" he scoffed. She threatened Sam. There was no way they were on the same side. "Which side is that?"

"Elizabeth's."

The name caught him off-guard. He hadn't been expecting that to be her answer. He had no idea that Isobel and Elizabeth were in cahoots with each other.

"She wants John Gilbert to have the device and I think that you know that she's not happy when she doesn't get what she wants," Isobel explained further, stroking Damon's face. "Katherine also wishes for John to have it."

"Oh so Katherine ditched Anna and Pearl and went right back to the sister who abandoned her?" Damon questioned.

"Katherine has no idea where Elizabeth is," Isobel said. "I would be surprised if she even wanted to know."

"Yet they want the same thing?" Damon said skeptically.

Isobel shrugged.

"They're alike and they think alike," she said.

Damon slapped her hands off him.

"Why are you doing Elizabeth's dirty work?"

"Don't kill the messenger," she stated dryly. "We both know that you can't control Elizabeth. She does what she wants. She and Katherine both do."

Damon scoffed. "So do I."

"Oh really, Damon? You do?"

Isobel sped up to him, but was stopped when Damon gripped her forearm. The two were inches away from each other, breathing heavily.

"What should we do now?" Isobel asked innocently.

They both chuckled at her question. The answer was obvious.

They closed the distance between them and kissed each other roughly. While Isobel moved him quickly to the couch and continued kissing him with her hands roaming down his body, Damon made a mental list of the things wrong with her. Her hair was too dark, it didn't wave the right way, her eyes had too much blue and not enough green, there wasn't a ring of gold around her irises when you looked close enough, her skin wasn't soft enough, she wasn't the right height, her body wasn't the right shape…

_Enough_, he thought as he pushed her off and pinned her back on the floor by her neck.

"Now that I have your attention, listen up," he threatened. "You do not come into my town, threaten people I care about- going after Sam? Bad move. You can do whatever the hell you want with your daughter, but you leave Sam alone, or I will rip you to bits because I do believe in killing the messenger."

Isobel struggled in pain below him as he whispered in her ear. "You know why? Because it sends a message."

He picked her up by her neck and slammed her head back against the floor, making her shout in pain.

"If Elizabeth wants something from me, you tell that little _bitch_ to come get it herself," he spat. "Same goes for Katherine."

With that, the angered raven-haired vampire left Isobel on the floor and stormed out of the mansion.

* * *

**Sam's POV**

The day after meeting Isobel, Bonnie came over to the house and apologized for walking away after seeing Elena in pain at the Grill. I hadn't even realized that she came because she left before I saw her. She reconciled with Elena and I and…I felt like a piece of us was back. Bonnie was back in our lives and we couldn't be happier about it.

We told her about the meeting with Isobel and what she wanted from us. We also told her about what Isobel was threatening to do if she didn't get it. Since we had no clue what the device was even for, Bonnie said that she would look in to it.

While preparing the floats for Founder's Day, she asked Elena and I to meet up with her and Chastity in one of the chemistry labs.

"Hey," she greeted when we came in. "Thanks for meeting us."

"No problem," I said. "What's up?"

"I wanted you guys to see this," Bonnie explained, showing us Emily's spell book open on top of one of the lab counters.

"Is that Emily's spell book?" Elena asked.

Bonnie nodded.

"She's been going through it since her Grams died," Chastity explained. "Check this out."

She pointed down at the old, yellowing paper of the spell book. Pictures, words, and symbols were drawn in an elegant script. I recognized one of the drawn pictures immediately.

"That's the vampire compass," I pointed to it in surprise.

"Yeah," Bonnie nodded. "According to Emily, Jonathan Gilbert never actually succeeded in inventing anything. Emily secretly spelled them all with magic. Compass…" Bonnie turned the page where a picture of a ring resembling the ones Uncle John and Alaric wore was. "…rings…" She turned the page again where a picture of the invention Isobel wanted was. "…and the mystery device you told me about."

"Damon only has the one piece," I realized, seeing a much bigger picture of the invention.

"Emily pledged her loyalty to Elizabeth and, consequently, Katherine," Bonnie started. "But she couldn't stand by and watch innocent people get killed. This was the only way she could think of to help- to let Jonathan Gilbert believe he actually invented these devices."

"Does it say what it does?" Elena asked.

Bonnie leafed through the pages, reading the old language of Emily's writing closely. After a few moments, she furrowed her eyebrows and looked back to Elena and I in confusion.

"What is it, Bon?" Chastity asked seeing the look on her face.

"Are you guys sure this is what Isobel wants?" Bonnie asked.

"Yeah, we're sure. Why?" I asked just as confused now. What did it do?

"This is a weapon," Bonnie answered. "Against vampires."

My eyes widened. What would Isobel want with a weapon that could be used against vampires?

* * *

Afterwards, Elena and I had split up in the crowds of people preparing for the Founder's Day parade to search for Stefan when out of nowhere, Matt's hand got crushed beneath the trailer of the float he was working on. I wasted no time in rushing over while Tyler and some other guys tried lifting in off him to no success until Stefan came over and lifted the whole thing with ease.

I quickly helped Matt get out, cradling his hand gently while Caroline hurriedly took out her phone to call an ambulance at Stefan's order.

Why did this happen? Any other time I would have summed it up to a freak accident, but considering who was in town and the fact that it happened to Matt…

I scanned the crowd while Caroline took over taking care of Matt. Stefan joined my side and shortly after, we were joined by a panicked Elena.

"Isobel did this," she informed us. "She has Jeremy and she's going to kill him unless Sam gets the invention from Damon."

"She did this to get the invention?" I gasped. "I can't get it! Damon won't give it to me."

"She said we're underestimating how much Damon cares about you," Elena shook her head.

"What does that even mean?" I said frustrated. "He's not going to give it up to her. Especially when he finds out what it's for."

We were joined then by Bonnie and Chastity, both looking equally confused.

"What the hell is going on?" Chastity asked.

* * *

We went to Alaric's classroom, seeing that we couldn't very well talk freely out in the open in front of our fellow classmates. Bonnie sat in one of the desks up front while Chastity leaned against Alaric's desk across from her. Stefan stood between them while Elena paced back and forth in the open space between him and Chastity. I leaned against the classroom door, worry about Jeremy plaguing my thoughts while I also wondered why Isobel was so insistent on me specifically getting the device from Damon.

"Where is the device?" Bonnie asked after we explained the situation to her and Chastity.

"Damon has it," Stefan answered. "He's going to be difficult to reason with."

"We'll go to him," Elena said. "Sam can talk to him."

"I have to try," I added.

"He's not gonna just hand it over, especially if it's harmful to vampires," Stefan pointed out.

I shut my eyes, knowing he was right.

"That doesn't mean I shouldn't try," I told him. "Isobel has Jeremy. I can't just do nothing about that."

"What if it's not harmful to vampires?" Elena spoke up then.

I perked up while she looked to Bonnie, who seemed to realize exactly what Elena meant as well as Stefan and Chastity. Bonnie glanced over at Chastity and a look was exchanged between them as if they were silently communicating before Chastity sighed and looked down at the ground.

* * *

"Absolutely not," was Damon's predicted response to the situation.

"Just hear me out?" I pleaded with him.

"Sam, I'm not gonna give the device to Isobel so she can give it to John, who is no doubt gonna turn around and use it to kill me," he said. "I like being a living dead person."

"But it'll be useless," Elena cut in. "Bonnie can take the power away."

I glanced over at Bonnie behind me, who was sitting on the arm of one of the chairs beside Chastity. I didn't want to say anything because I didn't know what to say. Elena's solution was asking Bonnie to take the magic away from Jonathan Gilbert's invention so it would be essentially useless.

There were two problems I saw with that. One, we didn't know what Isobel would do as punishment when they figured out that the invention didn't work anymore. She'd already proven that she had no problem hurting people we cared about and I didn't want to find out who she would go after next. Two, Bonnie was being asked to de-spell a device that would be used against vampires. Basically, she was being asked to protect vampires when it was a witch's duty to protect each other and innocents.

"I don't trust her," Damon said, shooting a glare at Bonnie, who happily returned it with one of her own.

"I can remove the original spell," she spoke up.

"And they'll never know," Chastity added.

"No," Damon said stubbornly. "I'll get Jeremy my own way."

"Really?" Stefan challenged now. "How are you gonna do that? Hm? Because Isobel is a vampire and Jeremy can be dead the second you walk in the door."

Damon's jaw clenched when he realized Stefan was right and he eyed Bonnie suspiciously.

"Are you even up for this?" he questioned her. "I mean, no offense. You're no Emily Bennett. Emily knew what she was doing."

"Ive been practicing," Bonnie stated confidently.

"It's not piano lessons, honey," Damon retorted.

"And what exactly would you know?" Chastity defended. "Just because you're older than dirt doesn't make you an expert on magic."

Damon gave her an annoyed glare while Bonnie suddenly rose up and marched up to him in determination.

"What's your favorite book?" she asked.

"What?" was Damon's confused, irritated reply.

"Name a book," Bonnie said. "Any book."

I watched Bonnie in wonder. What was she planning with this?

"Name a book," Damon mockingly repeated. "How about…Call of the Wild, Jack London?"

Bonnie turned to the bookshelf, focusing on the requested title on the shelf. Soon after, the book started shaking on the shelf before flying across the room right in to Damon's hand. He looked at the cover.

"Jack London," he announced, hardly impressed. "Great parlor trick."

"Damon please," I begged softly, stepping forward. "Isobel has Jeremy. We can't waste any more time."

He looked at me with sympathy before it disappeared when he switched his eyes back to Bonnie.

"I don't trust you," he declared. "I tried to kill you."

I winced at the memory before stepping even closer to him.

"You can trust me," I told him. "You know you can."

Damon sighed heavily, slowly looking back to me. I didn't dare break eye contact with him as he searched my face for the tiniest bit of deceit. When he found none, his shoulders slumped ever so slightly with defeat.

Reaching over, he picked up my hand and put the device in my palm, closing my hand tightly and bringing it up to his lips. He pressed a light kiss on my knuckles before releasing my hand and I let out a grateful sigh.

"Thank you," I whispered.

* * *

After Bonnie de-spelled the device, I prepared myself to meet up with Isobel in the town square where she requested to meet. Technically, her demand was for just me to show up to meet her and she swore that we would be alone. However, considering she was…well, her, her word wasn't exactly trusted.

Elena came with me, as did Stefan and Damon- though they stayed hidden. We waited anxiously in the empty square, looking around in the night illuminated softly by the streetlights for Isobel.

A breeze passed us and we both turned in time to see Isobel standing in front of us.

"Where's the device?" she immediately demanded.

"Where's our brother?" I retorted firmly.

"This isn't a negotiation. Where's the invention?"

I crossed my arms defiantly while Elena glared at her.

"Where is our brother?" Elena asked her.

"Do you really think I came alone?" Isobel questioned, looking superior.

Elena and I looked behind us, where a man and a woman now stood looking every bit as superior as Isobel did. I turned back.

"Do you really think we came alone?" I asked her as Stefan and Damon appeared behind her. "You probably should have figured Elena wouldn't be the only one to come with me."

"I expected as much," Isobel hummed, glancing back at the Salvatores. "For god sakes, call home."

Elena and I looked at each other before Elena pulled out her cell phone and called home. She visibly sighed with relief and nodded at me. I looked at Isobel curiously.

"You were never going to hurt him," I stated.

"No," she said in a looming coo. "I was going to _kill_ him."

I was taken aback by her response.

"Don't look for any redeeming qualities in me, I don't have any," she said.

"Why did you want _me_ to get the device?" I decided to ask. "How did you even know Damon would give it to me?"

"Because he's in love with you," she said.

I furrowed my eyebrows, though my heart beat wilding in my chest at her easy announcement.

"Damon's not in love with me," I denied almost instantly.

"Modest," Isobel stated, rolling her eyes.

She held out her hand, expecting me to give her the device. I glared at her before roughly handing it over.

"Thank you," Elena said to Isobel suddenly.

"For what?" she asked.

"For being such a monumental disappointment," Elena replied. Isobel seemed unfazed. "It keeps the memory of our real mother perfectly intact."

With that, she stormed past Isobel straight into Stefan's arms while I stayed where I was. Isobel looked from where Elena had just been to me.

"Have something you'd like to add?" she asked.

"Not really," I said. "I still think there's something there with you."

She rolled her eyes.

"You know, you can say you have no redeeming qualities, you can talk about how little human life means to you now all you want, but it meant something before and you had good qualities. I think you still do."

"If that's what you think, then you're more naïve than I thought you were," she drawled. "Goodbye Samantha. As long as you and Elena have a Salvatore on your arm, you're doomed. Elizabeth was smart. She got out. But we all know that you aren't her. Just like Elena isn't Katherine."

What should have been a compliment sounded more like an insult, especially with the way she looked me up and down.

She walked past me, her two bodyguards or whatever following closely behind. Elena and Stefan started walking toward me but I turned away to look after Isobel.

"Can I ask you one more thing?"

She stopped and looked at me, her emotionless mask still on.

"What?" she asked.

"John," I started. "He's Elena's birth father, isn't he?"

She stared at me momentarily and though I tried my best to read her, I couldn't see past the many barriers she had up.

"It's not Elena's birth father you should be curious about," she finally said. "I'd start looking for yours, if I were you."

With that, she and the other two disappeared, leaving me astounded. Why would she say that?

Not wanting to think anymore of it, I turned to Elena, who had tears running down her face and wasted no time in walking over to comfort her. She had just met her birth mother- the woman she had been searching for so hopefully- only to find a supposedly empty shell of a vampire. I couldn't imagine how she must have been feeling and it only hurt more to know that there wasn't anything I could do to take her pain away.

* * *

**Third POV**

Damon stood in the living room of the boarding house pouring himself a drink, thinking over what Isobel so bluntly said earlier in the handing over of the device. He wasn't used to being figured out so easily. His feelings for Sam, and he wouldn't deny to himself anymore that they were there, had been more obvious than he initially feared.

Looking over his shoulder as his younger brother entered the room, Damon mentally groaned.

"Would you like one?" Damon offered a drink.

No response, so Damon just decided to have Stefan get it over with.

"Say it," he said, looking forward. "Whatever it is, purge, get it out."

"It's about what Isobel said," Stefan said, placing his hands on the railing in front of him.

"Figured as much," Damon muttered. "What about it?"

"Well, I know that you and Sam…bonded, and I know that she cares about you, and, uh, I know you care about her."

"Well, this is going in an _interesting_ direction," Damon said genuinely amused now.

"I'm just concerned about Sam getting hurt," Stefan shrugged. "She considers you a friend. She's light, she's very compassionate, and while she's strong, there's still only so much she can take."

"She's all those things and more and I consider her a very good friend," Damon agree. "I would even say that she's my _only _friend. Is that a problem, brother?"

"I just don't want her being hurt," Stefan informed Damon. "I'm sure you can understand. Considering she's her and you're…_you_."

"Is someone trying to juggle two girls again?" Damon smirked. "How would Elena feel about that?"

"History will not be repeating itself," Stefan shook his head. "Not where she and Sam are concerned."

"Honestly, we're just friends," Damon insisted innocently. "But speaking of, were you planning on breaking the news to Elena? Because I'm not sure she caught on to what Sam already had figured out."

"What are you talking about?" Stefan said with furrowed brows.

"Are Sam and I the only ones who know how to put two and two together?" Damon asked. "Isobel and John dated when she was fifteen, she gets pregnant, gives birth under the care of John's _brother_…come on. What do you think John's role is in all of this?"

"You think John is Elena's birth father?" Stefan realized slowly.

"Ding, ding, ding!"

"What proof do you have?" Stefan asked skeptically.

"Don't need any," Damon shrugged. "That's a DNA test for John, Elena, and Maury Povich to deal with. And yours because…well that's your bomb since I'm sure Elena wasn't paying attention. The bomb I'm more interested in finding is the one for Sam, which probably won't be as hard to figure out since Isobel clearly knew something about who her birth parents are. As her _friend_, I feel it's my obligation to help her find out especially when she's too busy taking care of Elena to find out for herself."

He strolled out of the room with his drink, leaving Stefan to stare at the spot he had just been standing in.

"Let me know when you drop that bomb on Elena, though," he called over his shoulder. "I'm looking forward to her reaction."

Stefan wanted to punch him.

* * *

In the backseat of a car heading out of town, Isobel called John and informed him as to where he could find the device and reminded him of his instructions on what to do with it, warning him not to screw up.

"I won't fail," he assured her.

"You better not," Isobel said. "Elizabeth wants all of those tomb vampires dead. And I want to add two more to that list."

"Let me guess," John said knowingly.

"Stefan and Damon," she said clearly anyway. "I don't want this life for Elena."

"Well that was always part of the plan," said John. "Consider them gone."

"She's our daughter, John," Isobel said. John would swear up and down that there was a hint of emotion in her voice. "We owe that to her."

"I know," he said. "One more thing before you go, Isobel?"

"What?"

"Who are the vampires you've had following Sam around?"

Isobel's eyebrows furrowed.

"I haven't had anyone following her," she denied.

"Elizabeth then."

"Elizabeth hasn't either and as far as I know, neither has Katherine."

"Someone has been keeping tabs on her," John insisted. "Unless you think it's _them_."

"Your guess is as good as mine," Isobel stated flatly. "Either way, do your job and keep her safe. Make sure Stefan and Damon die."

"I will."


	22. Founder's Day

**Fave Song- It Is What It Is by Lifehouse**

* * *

I let out a gasp when the strings of my dress were suddenly pulled tighter, placing a hand over the hardened area of my stomach thanks to the corset. Aunt Jenna let out a snicker.

"Sorry," she apologized. "But you gotta suck it in too, sweetheart."

"You don't think this corset will cause any lasting damage on my spleen or anything, do you?" I asked her with a small smile.

She laughed as she laced the strings together.

"Let's hope not," she said.

She sighed and placed her hands on my shoulder, looking at me through my mirror.

"All finished," she announced.

I looked at myself carefully. Because Caroline and Mrs. Lockwood insisted on having me up on the Miss Mystic Falls float along with a couple other girls who had signed up for next year's Miss Mystic Falls, I was in full 19th century costume. Caroline had chosen for me a pink dress with delicate white lace around the scooping neckline and off-shoulder sleeves and also along the bottom hem of the dress, draping up beneath large pink bows and coming back down before going up to the next bow.

My hair was curled, much like it was on the day of the Miss Mystic Falls pageant, and put up in side bun decorated with silver butterfly pins with two curls framing my face.

"Don't forget this," Elena said as she came in to my room, dressed up as well for the parade.

She held my locket up in between her fingers and I smiled as she came up behind me. She clasped it around my neck and smiled at me.

"Now you're ready," she announced.

"We both are," I said. "Let's get going. I wanna get out of this thing as soon as possible."

Elena and Aunt Jenna laughed.

* * *

**Third POV**

At the high school, where people were doing last minute float decorations and preparing for the Founder's Day parade, Stefan walked slowly through, avoiding the nagging Mrs. Lockwood best he could while he waited for Elena and Sam. He was soon joined by his brother, who walked up to Stefan and immediately commented about his retro wear.

"What are you doing here?" Stefan asked him.

"Why wouldn't I be here?" Damon returned. "Bonnie deactivated the Gilbert invention. Isobel's gone." He let out a victorious chuckle at that. "And it's Founder's Day. I'm here to eat cotton candy and hit on your girlfriend's little sister."

He playfully slapped Stefan's arm and wiggled his eyebrows at the last bit while Stefan deadpanned at him, not the least bit amused.

"Don't start with me, Damon," he said annoyed.

"Oh, you started it, Stefan, with that whole 'you'll hurt Sam because you're the big bad wolf and she's innocent little red, so leave her alone' speech," Damon mocked. "I'm just enjoying that."

"As long as you heard it," Stefan nodded.

"What?" Damon teased, cupping his ear as though he couldn't hear him. "Huh?"

Stefan just chuckled without humor, not wanting to entertain his brother today.

"You have no sense of humor. Sam would have laughed at that," Damon said, thinking about how he always managed to make her laugh.

"Actually, I have no sense of _Damon_ humor," Stefan corrected before he began to step away from Damon.

"Damon humor," Damon repeated, pretending to take offense before he started to follow Stefan. "Hey- look, I get it. I get it. I'm irresistible and…me and you're scared now that Elizabeth is out of the picture that I'm going to turn all my focus on Sam."

"No, see you've already done that, Damon," Stefan pointed out. "I just don't want anything happening between you because I don't want things ending badly."

"You don't need to worry," Damon insisted. "And before you start worrying about me stealing Elena, she is not Katherine. Just like Sam is not Elizabeth, so there's no need to think anything between us would end badly. It's not even my call to make if something does happen with us."

"You're right," Stefan agreed.

Suddenly, Damon's attention was focused on something behind Stefan. Awe and adoration filled his eyes and when Stefan turned his head to see what had his brother's attention, he felt his eyes widen and his jaw almost drop.

Coming up behind them was Sam in all her angelic glory. She looked delicate and pure, like a princess, but Stefan and Damon both knew she was strong and feisty too. Though the dress was magnificent, no one else would have been able to make it look as beautiful as she did. She looked like a true ghost of the past, an elegant beauty who stepped right out of 1864 in to the present.

And though she would easily pass for Elizabeth any day, there was physically one key difference that Damon noticed after all the time he spent with her and it wasn't the hair- it was the eyes.

Thinking back, Damon realized that there had always been a mistrustful glimmer in Elizabeth's eyes. One that screamed of mischievous deceit, selfishness, and darkness. In Sam's eyes…there had been nothing but warmth, compassion, and honesty. He always felt himself being sucked in whenever she looked at him. He felt like she was the light and he had the honor of basking in the glow of it even though everyone and their mothers knew he didn't deserve to.

He loved her. More than he had ever loved Elizabeth.

With Elizabeth, he always felt like he was chasing, desperately trying to keep her attention and earn her love. With Sam…he felt wanted. He felt like the only man in the world, like for once…someone wanted him and only him, and not because they were trying to make someone else jealous or because there was no one else, but because _she_ wanted _him_ just as badly as he wanted her.

The heart crushing possibility that she may not want him back occurred to Damon as Sam noticed him and Stefan gawking at her- and now Elena (a perfect copy of Katherine)- and grinned at them, curtsying with perfection.

Dammit all.

* * *

**Sam's POV**

Shortly after meeting up with Stefan and Damon, I decided to find Caroline to make sure our float was to her approval in order to give Stefan and Elena privacy. I knew I should have been the one to tell Elena about the possibility of John being her birth father, but Stefan and I both knew that he was the only one who would be able to tell her in the most calm and articulate manner. He would also be appropriate and sensitive about it, unlike a certain black-haired, blue-eyed man who shall remain nameless.

There was also the fact that, even though she didn't say anything, Elena was a bit unhappy with me for not telling her that I told Jeremy the truth about everything she and I- up until that point- had been hiding from him. He confronted her just before Isobel kidnapped him, asking her if she had seen or spoken to Anna lately- which neither of us had- and revealed he knew what Anna was and what Elena had done and that she lied to him.

Though she understood that Jeremy asked me not to say anything because he wanted to confront her when he was ready, it still hurt her to know that I had kept something from her, which I understood. After all, I was a little hurt about her keeping Isobel from me at first.

"Hey!"

I turned to the voice behind me, which turned out to be Adam. He was dressed up as a confederate soldier, much like Jeremy and Tyler, and was twirling a fake rifle in his hand as walked up to me.

"Hey," I greeted back. "You look pretty great."

"I look dead," he said, gesturing to the big splotch of fake blood in the center of his chest. "Tyler's idea. Said if I were ever in a real war, I'd be the first to die."

"Ouch," I commented, though I wasn't surprised. Tyler never liked Adam that much and vice versa. "If it's any consolation, I think you'd put up a good fight."

"Yeah, thanks," he laughed. "So…can I ask you something at the risk of sounding jealous?"

"Go ahead," I permitted.

"What's with you and Damon?"

I blinked in surprise.

"Um…what do you mean?" I laughed nervously.

"I mean, what's going on between you guys? Are you…together or something?"

"Why do you ask?"

"Well I'm just curious because…I saw the way he looked at you when you and Elena first got here- the way he looks at you all the time, really. It's like…like he's in love with you or something."

I opened my mouth, but no words came out. I didn't know what to say. He was the second person to imply that Damon was in love with me and I didn't know what to make of it anymore. Was Damon in love with me? There wasn't a doubt in my mind that I had feelings for Damon, but I didn't know if I could say that it was love.

Before I could give an answer, Adam held up a hand.

"You know what, you don't have to answer that," he said. "It's not my business."

"I don't have a problem with you asking," I assured him. "I just…I don't know how to answer, I guess."

"So there is something going on?"

I paused.

"Maybe."

* * *

Adam and I were found by Caroline and Matt, the former of which insisted we come with the two to take pictures. We met up near the float by Bonnie, Chastity, and Tyler and lined up all together for photos. One was taken with the four of us, then just Caroline and me, then just Matt and Adam, then Adam and me, and then Caroline and Matt.

I had insisted on Bonnie and Chastity taking a picture with Caroline and me, even though neither of them were dressed up in costume. I still wanted us all to have memories to look back on together and I wished that Elena and Stefan were over here to be apart of it too.

After Tyler offered to take the picture of us, Matt left rather abruptly, murmuring about how he would be on the float. An uncomfortable Adam excused himself too, not wanting to be around Tyler much longer.

"I said I was sorry," an exasperated Tyler said to us after Matt was gone.

"You made out with his mom," Caroline reminded him.

"Yeah and then _you_ beat _him_ to a pulp, when it should have been the other way around," Chastity added.

I frowned at her. Neither of them should have beaten the other. Tyler was wrong to hurt Matt like that, of course, but there was no need for either to beat the other.

"You're gonna have to do better than 'sorry'," Chastity continued.

Caroline hurried after Matt after Tyler took the picture and Chastity and Bonnie left to go get good spots to watch the parade from. I walked up to a disheartened Tyler and put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"You know what you did was wrong, so I won't lecture you about it," I began. "Forgiveness is tough to earn and trust is even harder win back, but that doesn't mean it's impossible. You guys have been best friends for way too long for Matt to just cut you out of his life entirely, so give him some time. Work on it, though. Prove to him that you really are sorry and that you really are his friend. He'll forgive you eventually."

He smiled weakly at me.

"Thanks, Sam."

It was the first time he ever called me by name and while it caught me off-guard at first, it also made me smile. Tyler was changing, little by little.

Just like Damon.

* * *

_This is a lot harder to keep my balance on than I thought it would be_, I thought as the float rolled out on to the streets. I did my best to keep up a graceful smile and wave to match the other girls in the front with me and the court behind us while maintaining my balance in my white heels.

Music blasted and people cheered. Pictures were taken and compliments were thrown out as we passed by.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome our stunning Miss Mystic Falls court and their handsome escorts, along with the future competitors of next year's Miss Mystic Falls!" Mrs. Lockwood introduced us from the stage off to the side. "This is Caroline Forbes, Miss Mystic Falls!"

I looked back at Caroline, who was waving to the adoring crowd, and smiled. She was beautiful and glowing with happiness.

"Aren't they all beautiful?" Mrs. Lockwood sighed admirably.

I looked out to the crowd and spotted Bonnie and Chastity, who waved to me with smiles on their faces. I waved back, my smile widening when Damon stepped in to view and gave me a flirty wave.

Thinking nothing of it, I rolled my eyes and waved back at him.

How did I feel about Damon? It didn't matter right now. Not with the looming, nagging voice in the back of my head that told me to focus on Elena's situation with her birth father than on my feelings for Damon.

* * *

As soon as the parade was over, I quickly relieved myself of the uncomfortable, albeit beautiful, dress and let my still curly hair down. I changed in to a much more comfortable pair of light blue jeans and a lavender v-neck shirt. I let out a happy sigh as I slipped my converse on.

"Hello old friends," I greeted them. "I've missed you. Thank you for not pinching my feet."

After I changed in to my modern day clothes, I headed out to the Grill where I was supposed to meet up with everyone else.

"I like you better like this," Damon informed me with a smirk, presenting himself in front of me. "The period look…it didn't suit you very much. You looked fantastic, don't get me wrong, it's just…not you."

"Thanks for the…compliment. I think," I said with a smile.

"Oh it was definitely a compliment of the highest order," he confirmed with an even bigger smirk.

I smiled back, but then shook my head and cleared my throat as I suddenly remembered Isobel's accusation of Damon being in love with me and Stefan and Elena's reactions. Even though they hadn't said anything, their faces showed their concern and their dislike.

"Look," I started. "I know that Stefan and Elena are both worried about our…friendship."

"Did Stefan mention something to you too? I know for sure Elena must have," he stated with a humorous glint in his eyes.

I furrowed my eyebrows. Elena really didn't say anything about it, she was busy trying to appeal to Jeremy to forgive her, and I hadn't really had the chance to talk to Stefan since I was busy helping with the float.

"No. Did they mention something to you?" I asked.

"No. Stefan has, not Elena. It's nothing worth repeating, though," Damon shrugged.

"They're just worried even though there's nothing for them to worry about," I sighed. "I think they just…misread things between us."

"What sort of things?" he asked, getting closer as he wagged his eyebrows. "Things like this?"

"Yes," I stepped back, trying to control my now erratic heartbeat. "That and the flirty comments along with the eye thing you do."

"What…eye thing?" he asked innocently, wagging his eyebrows once as he looked down at me intensely.

"That eye thing," I said, feeling my knees buckle.

He chuckled.

"So…we're friends, right?" I asked. "I just want to make sure because the last I heard, you didn't have any."

He looked at me earnestly, the teasing flirty eyes now traded in for softer serious eyes.

"We are," he nodded. "I mean that, Sam. I…you…"

I watched him with anticipation, wondering what it was that he wanted to say that could possibly have him- of all people- tongue tied like this.

He glanced down at the ground with narrowed eyebrows in deliberation, like whatever he wanted to say was important and he wanted to say it in just the right way.

By the time he looked back up with determination and opened his mouth, my brother brushed past us in a hurried manner, nearly knocking me down when he bumped in to my shoulder.

Damon, who had quickly reached out and caught me by my arm before I could fall, sent a glare to Jeremy's back.

"Jeremy," I called after him.

I heard him sigh before turning to me.

"What?" he snapped.

"What's wrong?" I asked, taken aback by his tone.

He scoffed. "What's wrong? That's a joke, right?"

"Jeremy!"

I looked behind Damon to see Elena walking through the crowd, hurt etched on her face. Jeremy rolled his eyes before turning back to walk toward the door.

"Jeremy, just wait a second," I begged, realizing Elena was trying to apologize. "Hear her out."

"You know what, Sam? _You_ hear her out," he said angrily as he whirled on me once more.

I gave him a confused look.

"What's that mean?" I asked him.

He laughed humorlessly as he looked up at the ceiling while I watched him. I could practically feel Elena's worry radiating off of her as she pleaded with Jeremy. Pleaded him to hear her out or to not say whatever he was going to say, I didn't know. He ignored her and blinked down at me, his smile dropping.

"She knew you were adopted," he stated slowly. "She and I both knew you were adopted. We've always known. You were three years old when Mom and Dad brought you home and told us that you were going to be our sister from then on."

I nearly staggered back in shock. Disbelief was the first thing I felt- other than the shock, of course. I blinked and breathed out once.

"Um."

I couldn't manage another sound. I wanted to ask why he would say that. Would it be just to get back at Elena, or even me too, for lying to him or was it actually the truth? I wanted to ask, but one look at my sister…and I didn't have to. Jeremy was telling the truth.

I couldn't understand why. Why would they not say anything? Especially after Elena found out about her own adoption. She had no idea that I was adopted. That's what she said…what she made me believe.

Jeremy didn't wait for an articulate response from me and took advantage of our distraction to leave. I didn't go after him.

* * *

**Third POV**

After making sure Elena would stay behind to comfort her sister, instead of the other way around for once, Damon went after Jeremy outside, catching up to him quickly in the fully crowded streets of celebrators.

"I have so many emotions, but I don't have any way to express them! Being a teenager is so hard," Damon mocked once he knew was in Jeremy's ear shot.

"You're a dick," Jeremy spat without turning to look back at him.

"_You_ do not talk to me like that," Damon said in a hard tone before grabbing Jeremy's arm, forcing him to stop and look at him. "And you don't talk to your sister that way, either. You also don't drop a bomb on her like that out of spite for the other sister. She deserves better than to hear the truth from the angsty and petty big brother she's done nothing but try to protect."

"So you're gonna kill me just because I hurt Sam's feelings?" Jeremy scoffed. "I just told her the truth after lying to her for a while. Kinda like she did with me."

"It's not _what_ you did, it's _how_ you did. You unceremoniously and insensitively told her the truth because you wanted to get back at Elena, not caring that you were using your little sister as a pawn to do it. What kind of brother hurts his sister to stick it to his other one? Especially when she's been through a lot and doesn't need _you _making her life any harder than it needs to be."

Regret filled Jeremy's eyes and he sighed deeply. "I know."

"Then apologize to Sam. I don't give a damn if you never forgive Elena, but just know that you should probably be cutting her some slack too."

"Elena erased my memories and lied about it. Sam helped her cover it up."

"Then she told you the truth and Elena didn't erase your memories, _I _did."

"Because Elena asked you to," Jeremy pointed out. "It wasn't her call to make."

He turned to leave when Damon harshly pulled him back once more. Though fear showed on his face briefly, Jeremy stood his ground and glared at Damon.

"Let go of me before I make a scene," he threatened.

"You'll be unconscious before you get a word out," Damon countered.

"Yeah and what would Sam say about you doing that? Huh?" Jeremy challenged.

Damon pressed his lips together and glared harder at Jeremy.

"Let him go," Stefan intervened calmly, suddenly appearing beside the two.

Damon slowly loosened his grip on Jeremy's arm before dropping it completely, shooting a brief glare toward Stefan as he stepped back while Stefan stepped between them.

"You alright?" Stefan asked Jeremy.

"Yeah," Jeremy said, glancing between him and Damon.

"What my brother is _trying _to say is," Stefan started, glancing back at Damon. "Don't blame Sam for this. Don't blame Elena either. Damon turned Vicki, I killed her. She was a threat to you and she was a threat to your sisters. I'm sorry it happened, I wish that it hadn't. All Elena wanted was to protect you and Sam just wanted to protect both of you and spare you the pain. She didn't want you finding out because she was afraid of what it would do to yours and Elena's relationship."

Jeremy remained silent, a pensive look on his face. He could understand where both his sisters were coming from, but truthfully it was more of the shock of their lies that made him reluctant to forgive them than the actual lies themselves. It made him think he couldn't trust them anymore, even though he knew well enough he had no right feeling that way when he kept Sam's adoption secret from her for much longer than she kept Vicki and all else secret from him.

Still, he was stubborn as all Gilberts were.

"You shouldn't have made me forget," he said shortly before leaving the two Salvatores.

When he was gone, Damon smirked.

"Good cop, bad cop. I like it," he said in his usual easy going manner.

Stefan, annoyed, now turned to his brother.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"He was being a punk," Damon defended.

"Sam and Elena's relationship with their brother is none of your business. You stay out of it," Stefan shot back.

"Oh there's only one do-gooder role available for both the girls. Oh, my bad. I'm sorry," Damon sarcastically smiled apologetically.

"Get over yourself," Stefan stated. "We both know you're not doing this for the right reasons."

"What, you think I'm doing this just to get on Sam's good side?" Damon questioned. "News flash, little brother: I already am on her good side. We're friends. Good friends. _Close_ friends." He enjoyed watching his brother shift uncomfortably when he stressed 'close'. "But, by all means, humor me. What are the _right_ reasons, Stefan? Enlighten me. Please.'

"Well, see, Damon," Stefan began. "It's only real when it comes from your desire to do the right thing for nothing in return. And I know that is an entirely foreign concept to you, I completely understand how you wouldn't get it."

"Maybe it's not so much a foreign concept anymore as it used to be," Damon murmured while Stefan turned away.

His little brother stopped mid-step.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he inquired without turning around.

"Maybe I just don't want to see her hurt. Maybe I don't expect anything from her."

Stefan, though he wanted to, couldn't bring himself to believe it. Not until Damon proved he was truly changed. Not until he proved that he would never- could never- hurt Sam.

* * *

**Sam's POV**

"I really hate to say 'I knew it', especially to you," Chastity sighed as we walked together around the town square. "But I really did have a feeling that Elena was keeping something from you."

I had told her about what Jeremy said, about him and Elena knowing about my adoption, and how Elena confirmed it after he left. She said that at first, Mom and Dad asked Jeremy and her not to say anything to me because they wanted to be the ones to explain it to me. They planned on telling me by my sixteenth birthday. Why my sixteenth birthday, I didn't know, but that was their plan.

After Stefan uncovered her adoption as well as my own, Elena had been too caught off-guard with her adoption to tell me that she knew about mine. By the time she got it together, she felt that she needed to wait for the right time to tell me the truth.

"I wanted to believe her," I said numbly. "Do you think she knows anything about who my birth parents are?"

"You didn't ask?"

"No."

After Elena explained why she didn't tell me the truth, I left and told her that I needed air. That's when I had bumped in to Chastity outside the Grill.

"Well, maybe now that the cat's out of the bag, your brother and sister can cough up what they know," she suggested.

I didn't say anything. Her phone began ringing and she pulled out her cellphone, groaning when she saw Olivia's picture on the screen.

"What does she want?" she sighed irritably. "I really hope she's not in her Witch-Jab-Hour mood because I'm getting really sick of being called Sabrina."

"Maybe it's something else," I said optimistically. "Maybe…she finally believes you and Claire and she wants to buy you cotton candy to make up for it."

"Doubt it, but thanks for trying," Chastity murmured. "Would you hate me if I bailed on you to go see what she wants?"

I waved dismissively with a smile, gesturing that I was fine. She smiled and hugged me, assuring me that everything would be okay, before finally answering Olivia's call with an resounding "what?".

When she disappeared in to the crowd, I began making my way over to an empty bench with the intention of sitting down for the first time today. I just barely sat when I was immediately pulled up to my feet by Damon, who began guiding me through the crowds along the sidewalk.

"Uh…" I began.

"Long story short: Tomb vampires targeting founding families. Last I checked, you're technically a Gilbert," he informed me swiftly.

"W-what?" I stuttered. "How do you- where's Elena? And Jeremy? Caroline and Tyler need to get out of here too-"

"There's no time. I already told Stefan, he's with Elena. As for your little brother, I'm sure his girlfriend will protect him."

"Anna's here too?"

"He's safe with her. As far as I can tell."

He didn't sound all that confident and it was weird, but I felt like Anna could be trusted with Jeremy. He really did seem to like her and he wasn't hurt. He knew what she was and he still wanted to see her, he had been asking about her today. I wouldn't be the one to separate them.

Damon brought me to Stefan and Elena, who were in the process of leaving the square. Elena's let out a sigh of relief when she spotted me and ran up, throwing her arms around me right away.

"You're okay," she said, sounding more like she was assuring herself of it.

"Get them out of here," I heard Damon tell Stefan from behind me.

"Where are you going?" Stefan asked.

"That's more than fifteen words, Stefan."

I looked from Elena to Stefan, feeling panicked.

"Jeremy's around here somewhere," I reminded them. "Damon said Anna was here and she would probably protect him, but I want to be sure. And I don't feel right just leaving Tyler and Caroline since they're founding family members too."

"You're right," Elena nodded.

"Stay by me, both of you," Stefan advised us, taking each of our hands with both of his. "We'll go find your brother and we'll warn Bonnie and Chastity so they get Tyler and Caroline out of here."

I gripped tightly on to Stefan's hand and nodded, following behind him to find our loved ones.

* * *

"Chastity said Mayor Lockwood sent Tyler home with Matt and Caroline," I informed Stefan and Elena as we got the outside of the square. "She and Olivia are working on looking for Bonnie right now."

"Olivia?" Elena echoed in confusion.

I shrugged.

"Something happened and she believes Chastity now," I said quickly.

The fireworks started and shortly after they did, Stefan suddenly dropped to his knees on the pavement, grabbing his temples and groaning in pain.

"Stefan?" I panicked, dropping down with him along with Elena.

He hunched over, as if the pain was intensifying.

"Stefan, what's going on?" she asked worriedly. "What's happening?"

"My head," he choked.

"What?"

"My head," he repeated, sounding like he was in excruciating pain.

His head…

All of a sudden, we were joined by Alaric, who picked up Stefan's right arm and threw it over his shoulder while Elena lifted from the other side while I trailed behind them down a flight of nearby stairs.

"I don't know what happened," Elena began explaining to Alaric. "He just dropped."

"He's not the only one. Cops are grabbing everyone who's gone down and injecting them with vervain."

Realization passed over me.

"Oh my god," I whispered. "They're rounding up the vampires. It's the invention. Jonathan Gilbert's invention."

The look on Elena's face suggested she didn't want to believe it, but could think of no other explanation.

Truthfully, I couldn't either. How else would they have managed to round up the vampires, who all suddenly dropped the way Stefan had?

Stefan, who was finally relieved of his pain by now, sat up, stumbling back to the bottom of the stairs. He sat down slowly with mine and Elena's assistance while Alaric went back up to check on the situation.

"Are you okay?" I asked Stefan gently.

"Yeah," he answered. "It was like needles were piercing my skull and then it just stopped."

I winced and pulled him in to a gentle hug, glad he was finally out of pain and relieved that he was alright. Alaric ran back down the stairs to us.

"I saw at least five vampires go down," he informed us. He looked between Elena and I. "They were taking them to your family's old building."

"I think Sam's right," Stefan said grimly. "It has to be the Gilbert device."

"But how would he get it to work?" Elena asked, referring to the man we all knew was behind this: Uncle John.

"Bonnie deactivated it," I said weakly. "At least…we think she did."

"What do you mean?" Elena asked confused.

"Bonnie was asked to deactivate a device that could protect people against vampires," Stefan explained to her.

"So we could protect you," Elena reminded him.

"And Damon. _Vampires_," Stefan stressed.

"We never should have asked her to," I shook my head, feeling guilty for going with a plan to ask Bonnie to go against something she believes in. "We should have just let it be and kept Stefan and Damon away from this. That way…"

I trailed off when a sickening realization came over me. I grabbed Stefan's arm.

"Where is Damon?" I panicked. "He went off on his own and- Alaric, did you see him up there?"

"No," Alaric shook his head, realizing the same thing I did. "I haven't seen him since this started."

I felt my throat tighten as I exchanged panicked looks with Stefan and Elena.

"Can you get Jeremy?" Elena asked Alaric. "Take him home. Sam should go too."

"I can't," I replied. "Not when Damon's in danger-"

"Damon would want you to be safe," Stefan interjected. "Going after him would be dangerous."

"I risked my life to save you and he said something similar," I told him firmly, referring back to when I went in to the house full of tomb vampires despite Damon telling Elena and me both not to. "I'm going to do the same for him."

Stefan pressed his lips together. He obviously didn't like it, but he knew there was nothing he could do. Elena looked every bit as frustrated as Stefan must have been, but she sighed eventually.

"Fine," she relented. She looked to Alaric. "Just Jeremy then, please?"

"Of course," he nodded. He looked to me then and placed a hesitant hand on my shoulder. "Be careful, will you?"

"Of course," I mimicked his answer.

* * *

We hurried to the old building where Alaric said the vampires had been taken. On the way, Stefan had stopped and told us that he could hear them and that the building was on fire. That had only increased our fear and made us move quicker, only to come to Uncle John, who was standing in front of the building with his arms crossed and an accomplished look on his face.

"Where's Damon?" I demanded.

Uncle John turned to us, not the least bit surprised to see Elena or I, though he seemed bothered by seeing Stefan with us.

"With the rest of them," he answered. "Where he should be. It's over for Damon."

"You're crazy," Elena said shaking her head with disbelief.

"Why?" Uncle John challenged. "Because I'm doing what should have been done 145 years ago? This is the right thing."

I looked anxiously between him and the building, trying to weigh my chances of being able to run past him without him catching me. I knew Stefan was doing the same by the way Uncle John looked at him and smirked.

"Go ahead," he gestured back toward the building with his head. "You won't make it out. It'll save me the trouble of killing you myself."

I looked back at Stefan with pleading eyes. He looked at me inquiringly.

"Is there another entrance?" he asked, knowing what I was going to ask even though I didn't have to.

Stefan was as worried about his brother as I was. Probably even more.

I ran the building plan through my head, searching for the answer in my memories of playing in Dad's building as a kid with Elena and Jeremy.

"Utility door," I answered quickly after I remembered it. "Around the side, right Elena?"

She nodded quickly. Stefan started off to where I said. Elena and I tried to follow, but we were both stopped by Uncle John.

"Either of you take one more step and I'll alert the deputies that they missed a vampire," he threatened lowly.

"I'm asking you not to," Elena breathed out.

"That doesn't mean anything to me," Uncle John bluffed. His eyes gave him away.

"As her father, it does," I called him out.

Uncle John's eyes widened and he backed up slightly, never taking his eyes off Elena who stared him down just as intensely.

A pregnant pause fell over before he replied, looking at Elena still. "You know."

"I wasn't sure," she replied, shaking her head briefly. "Sam had it figured out first. Now I'm sure too."

Uncle John fell in to another dumbstruck silence while Elena stared him down in slight disgust and disappointment. Seeing that he wasn't going to stop us again, she moved past him. I went to go too, but he seemed to regain his senses and latched on to my arm before I could get away.

"No," he told me. "You're staying here."

"Why didn't you tell her?" I asked, seeing that I couldn't wiggle my way out of Uncle John's grip. "Were you ever planning on it?"

"Those questions are very difficult to answer right now, Samantha," he replied seriously. "On a similar note, I'm surprised you haven't asked about your own birth parents."

The fact that he said basically the same thing Isobel did didn't surprise me in the least bit.

"Would you actually tell me anything?" I asked. "Do you even know who they were?"

"I don't," he said. "Katherine and Elizabeth do."

I blinked, stunned. I wasn't expecting that answer.

"What?"

He smirked down at me.

"All I can say is that I was asked to protect you," he said. "That includes not allowing you to go in to a fire in order to save a killer."

"Damon isn't-" I stopped myself. Damon _has _killed before. "Damon isn't like that. Not anymore."

"And what makes you so sure? What makes you believe you can trust him?"

"Because I can," I replied. "Because he has protected me, he has saved my life, and he has helped me and been there for me more than you ever have my entire life. I'll admit that when he first got to town, he wasn't the best, most trustworthy person, but he's changed. He's different now."

He stepped back and I felt his grip loosen, before it went completely limp and his hand fell to his side.

Without another word, I ran past him as to not give him another chance to grab me. All the while I thought about what he said.

Katherine and Elizabeth knew who my birth parents were and Uncle John…John was ordered to protect me. Add that to the vampires who kept showing up every time I was in serious danger and the fact that I was three years old when I was adopted…more questions about my birth parents formed. Who were they? Why did I need to be protected?

Shaking my head clear, I pushed it all out. There was no time to wonder about who I really was when I needed to make sure Damon- and now Stefan- were okay.

* * *

I arrived in time to see Stefan bring a coughing Damon out of a smoke filled doorway where Elena, Bonnie, and Chastity stood. I paused only to let out a sigh of relief before I ran up to Stefan and Damon.

"Oh my god!" I breathed, bending slightly to look at Damon carefully.

I couldn't find any injuries, just smudges on his face. He seemed exhausted, which I would assume to be because of the vervain injection he no doubt got and the smoke inhalation. After I was sure he was alright, I looked to Stefan, who was breathing heavily but was standing strong and supporting Damon.

"You're okay?" I checked just in case there was something I couldn't see.

Both brothers nodded, catching their breath and coughing out the last of the smoke.

I closed my eyes and threw an arm around each of them, hugging them tightly. I had been so worried…

They each placed a hand on my back to return my hug, Damon lightly kissing the top of my head from his side. After a while, I let them go and backed away from Stefan to make more room for Elena to join us. I looked back at Chastity and Bonnie curiously, wondering if they played a role in helping Stefan save Damon.

* * *

The fire was put out and the official cover story was that the old wiring of the building was what caused it.

Damon had disappeared, Jeremy was home, and Stefan and Elena were back at the Grill. Bonnie told me that she really didn't deactivate the device and Chastity knew that Bonnie never had any intention of taking the spell off of it in the first place. They both apologized for lying, which I assured them that there was no reason to because it had been too much of us to ask for in the first place. I assured them that nothing had changed with our relationship, we were still all as close as friends as we had been. They were relieved.

They also told me that Bonnie did help Stefan save Damon. She performed a spell to weaken the flames of the fire, giving Stefan an opportunity to go down to the basement of the building to pull Damon out before she let the flames grow back to normal. I don't think I thanked her enough for doing that, even though she said that she was happy to do it for me and Elena.

So now, in the aftermath, here I was. Walking up the porch steps of my house with my dress bag in hand as well as Elena's. I felt exhausted from the day, but one nagging thought refused to leave me and that was Damon. Where had he gone off to after being saved by Stefan?

My question was answered when I got up to the porch in time to see Damon stepping out the front door. I paused in surprise before approaching him.

"Hey," I greeted him. "I was wondering where you went. I didn't think that you'd be here."

"Eh, call it a failed and feeble attempt at doing the right thing," he replied.

I looked at him curiously.

"Really now?" I smiled. "And what does Damon Salvatore's 'failed and feeble attempt at doing the right thing' entail?"

"Not important," he chuckled, taking the bags out of my hand. "I'll take these."

"Thanks," I said gratefully. "I can actually feel my arm now. Those dresses are heavier than I expected."

He set them on the bench beside us.

"I cringe just thinking about how you had to wear it," he said. "Didn't look all that comfortable."

"Yeah…it wasn't."

A brief silence fell over us as I watched him, wondering what it was that he wanted to say to me because there was clearly something.

"You know," he began eventually. "I came to this town wanting to destroy it. And tonight…I found myself wanting to protect it. How does that happen?"

"Because you're good," I answered instinctively.

He shook his head, a small solemn smile rising on his lips.

"I'm not good, Sam. It's not in me. I'm no hero- that's Stefan. He's good. Elena's good. _You're_ good."

"Everyone has good in them," I insisted. "Even those who we don't think have any. Some of them just choose not to show it."

"Why do you do that?" he asked much like he had before, only he sounded less frustrated and more soft. "Why do you try to see the good in everyone?"

"Because I know it's there," I answered. "It's always there. Some people just forget it is. Like you did."

He pressed his lips together and sighed through his nose.

"Still," he said. "There are people who don't see it how you do. Like…Chastity- even though she's a major brat- and Bonnie. She's good, but I gave her every reason to hate me. Yet she still helped Stefan save me."

"You sound so surprised," I observed.

"Because she did it for Elena, but most of all she did it for you," he said immediately, slowly inching closer to me. "Which means you really do believe I was worth saving. You always have, haven't you?"

"Of course," I said, swallowing. He was getting close…

He leaned in, eyes searching my face for any sign of discomfort even though my only discomfort was the extreme speed my heart was beating at. Slowly, he placed a sweet kiss on my cheek and the fire that sparked immediately after in my cheek burst through the rest of my body and remained as long as he lingered.

I felt his lips slowly trail away from my cheeks so that they were hovering over my own. I reveled in how soft they were, though soon after my mind turned to mush.

His fingers trailed up to my hair and he tucked a loose curl behind my ear, his hand lingering along my cheek. I stared up in to his intense eyes, feeling myself getting sucked in them as I had been many times before. He stared back in sheer adoration.

"Oh my god."

Damon and I jumped apart in surprise at the sound of a new voice. By now, the front door had opened and Aunt Jenna stared between Damon and I in surprise while just below us at the bottom of the steps was Elena, purse hanging loosely on her arm while she stared at us in equal surprise.

"It's…uh…it's late, Sam. You should probably come inside. You too, Elena, come in," Aunt Jenna said.

"Right," I cleared my throat.

I picked up the dresses off the bench and looked back at Damon, who was staring back at me despite being eyed up and down by Elena. Elena soon rolled her eyes before grabbing my arm, rather roughly might I add, before dragging me inside with her. Aunt Jenna closed the door right behind us, cutting off my view of Damon.

"Okay," she said after the door was closed. "I wasn't expecting that."

"Neither was I," Elena murmured.

I looked at her weirdly. There was something very…off about her.

Aunt Jenna excused herself, saying she needed to fill out a report for the fire, leaving Elena and I alone after she was gone. Not even a second after the door shut, Elena snatched my wrist and glared at me.

"What are you doing here?" she hissed.

I flinched at her tone and looked at her in astonishment.

"What do you mean?" I questioned her.

"I mean, what are you doing here?" she repeated seething. "Do you have any idea how long I've been looking for you?"

"What are you talking about?" I asked with scrunched eyebrows. "Elena, I just saw you not that long ago at the Grill. I told you I was picking up the dresses and coming right home to check on Jeremy."

All traces of anger left her face as shock and realization replaced them. She immediately let go of my now numb wrist and stepped back.

"Right," she breathed. "Uh…sorry, Sam. I completely forgot."

"Are you okay?" I asked, feeling concerned. Why did she react that way?

She shook her head. "Um…I think what happened tonight…just has me shaken still is all. We came pretty close to…you know."

"Yeah," I agreed. "Yeah we did get really close to losing them. But Stefan and Damon are alright and…that's what matters. Right?"

"Right," she nodded.

I smiled and looked at her a moment longer. There was something strange about her. Something different. I couldn't figure out what it was though.

"Well, I'm gonna go check on Jeremy and get to bed," I dismissed myself.

She nodded without a word and walked back to the kitchen while I slowly walked upstairs. What the hell was that all about? Why did she react that way?

Most of all, why did I have this feeling that something wasn't right with her? Like she was different, somehow. Like she was...someone else.

I stopped in the middle of the stairs, my eyes widening. There was no way...that couldn't have been...

Katherine?

* * *

**And that's the end of season 1! Thank you guys all so much for being so patient with me! I know I disappeared forever and came back only to disappear forever all over again, but you have all been so amazing in sticking with the story and I just need to tell you that all your support and reviews have been so incredibly uplifting for me. Thank you all, from the bottom of my heart!**

**Quick end author's note:**

**There will be a SEPARATE story for season 2. I am currently working on getting it started and I will post a notification to this story when the second one is published.**

**Couple more things- I know there have been some concerns about Sam's age in regards to her relationship with Damon. She is pretty damn young, but there is a reason for that. She and Damon won't be together for a while, which would technically make this a slow-burn romance I guess. I should have warned people about that, sorry.**

**Also, there's a lot of intrigue about Sam's birth parents and the vampires protecting her. Since it'll be a while before I reveal anything about her birth family, I will leave you with this hint: while she is NOT related to the original family, two certain members (I'm sure you'll have no problems guessing which two) have a lot to do with her and her birth parents.**

**Okay...what else...that's it! Thanks again guys! Be sure to look out for the second story!**


	23. New Story Release Date!

Hey guys!

I know it's been a while since Fix You ended and a lot of you are wondering when the H-E-Double Hockey Sticks the sequel is coming out.

Well wonder no more! I am currently going in review mode and I'm working on editing the first chapter of the sequel, which will be titled Change of Time (after a song by Josh Ritter), and it should be released by Sept. 14th and no later.

So stay patient, my lovelies. It's almost here. Thank you for all the support so far and I'll see you in the sequel!

Love, Kathy


	24. Change of Time

**Hi guys!**

**So...I just wanted to tell you all that it's probably a good idea to look for something called Change of Time.**

**No reason. You should probably just look for it for fun. :D**


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